Canadian Canfor Corporation announced it will be curtailing operations at all British Columbia sawmills, except WynnWood. The majority of mills will be curtailed for two weeks or the equivalent, with extended curtailments of four weeks at Houston and Plateau, and six weeks at Mackenzie. The curtailments are scheduled to run from June 17 through July 26.
The curtailments are due to very poor lumber markets and the high cost of fibre, which are making the operating conditions in BC uneconomic.
The curtailments will reduce Canfor’s production output by approximately 200 million board feet. Following the previously announced closure of Vavenby in July, Canfor will have 12 sawmills in Canada, with total annual capacity of approximately 3.55 billion board feet.
Also, Western Forest Products Inc. announced temporary production curtailments at three of its sawmills to align production volumes to match current customer demand.
Western will curtail its Duke Point sawmill for two weeks and its Saltair sawmill for one week in June. The company will also reduce operating levels from 120 hours per week to 80 hours per week at its Chemainus sawmill.
“The temporary production curtailments are necessary due to challenging market conditions,” said Don Demens, Western’s President and CEO. “The challenge of weak markets is compounded by the disproportionate impacts of softwood lumber duties on high value products, including Western Red Cedar.”
The curtailment is expected to reduce production by approximately 15 million board feet. Western has an annual lumber capacity in excess of 1.1 billion board feet.
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