West Fraser Timber has announced the signing of a definitive agreement for the sale of its Quesnel River Pulp mill and its Slave Lake Pulp Mill to Atlas Holdings.
Atlas owns and operates several pulp, paper and wood products businesses in Canada and the United States.
West Fraser states in a news release that “the agreement announced today includes related woodlands operations and timber holdings in Alberta and a long-term fibre agreement for the Quesnel River Pulp facility.”
The release goes on to say that the sold mills will be operated by Millar Western Forest Products, a Canadian forest products company headquartered in Edmonton with existing pulp mill operations in Alberta, establishing a strong foundation and a bright future for the Quesnel River Pulp and Slave Lake pulp mills.
Combined proceeds from the sale are 120 million dollars U.S.
“We believe this transaction provides these two great assets and teams a strong strategic future while allowing West Fraser to focus our resources on our objective to be the premier wood building products company in North America,” said Ray Ferris, West Fraser’s President and CEO. “Atlas Holdings and Millar Western bring deep experience in the pulp sector, and we look forward to continuing to work together as a key fibre supplier to Quesnel River Pulp.”
“This transaction will provide the dedicated and skilled teams at Quesnel River Pulp and Slave Lake with a solid future. Our team intends to continue investing in these high-quality mills and we look forward to collectively strengthening our product offerings and value proposition to the global BCTMP marketplace,” said David Anderson, CEO of Millar Western.
The transaction is anticipated to close following successful completion of customary regulatory reviews and satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
– with files from George Henderson, My Cariboo Now staff
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