Weyerhaeuser has announced it is to close its Kamloops sawmill and sell its harvesting licences in the area to West Fraser Co Ltd.
Weyerhaeuser said that the decision to close the Kamloops mill had come after a long consultation period, including looking for a buyer for the mill.
International Forest Products Ltd (Interfor) had reached an agreement-in-principle with Weyerhaeuser for the sale of the operation, but will now acquire 356,000m3 of harvestable timber.
“After a long process of examining all of our options for more than a year – including an extended search for a buyer of the Kamloops sawmill – we are announcing today the sale of our timber harvesting licences to West Fraser and the closure of the Kamloops sawmill,” said Bob Taylor, general manager of Weyerhaeuser’s British Columbia operations.
“The decision to close the sawmill was accelerated as a result of continuing challenging markets in the US and the rising Canadian dollar.”
The mill will cease operation on May 12 and 196 employees will be affected. Weyerhaeuser said it would work closely with employees and the community over the next three months “to help ensure everyone will be treated fairly throughout this difficult process”.
