Update: Canfor to curtail one Northwood line, close Polar sawmill, impacting 400 jobs

Update 5:30 p.m.

Canfor has announced the permanent closure of its Polar sawmill in Bear Lake and the suspension of its planned reinvestment in Houston.

This follows the announcement by its subsidiary company, Canfor Pulp, that one line of production will be indefinitely curtailed at the Northwood Pulp Mill.

The Polar sawmill, with a production capacity of about 300 million board feet annually, has been curtailed since January.

The permanent closure will impact approximately 180 employees, bringing today’s total to 400.

The news release is here.

Earlier story:

Canfor has announced its latest curtailment, this time at the Northwood facility in Prince George.

One pulp production line at Northwood will be shut down indefinitely due to a decline in available economic fibre in the region.

This will impact 220 jobs across Canfor Pulp and cut an estimated 300,000 tonnes of market kraft pulp annually.

“While the region has a substantive supply of sustainably grown timber, harvest levels are well below the Allowable Annual Cut partly due to natural disturbances, but increasingly because of the impact of a range of policy choices and regulatory complexity,” said Kevin Edgson, President and CEO of Canfor Pulp, in a news release.

“The persistent shortage of economic fibre, particularly in the Prince George region, has led to the closure or curtailment of a number of sawmills, which in turn has dramatically reduced the volume of chips available to meet the needs of our pulp operations. Despite exhaustive efforts, including expanding well beyond our traditional operating region, there is simply not enough residual fibre to supply the current production capacity of all our operations.”

The second production line at Northwood and the one production line at Intercon will carry on as normal.

A wind-down of the second pulp line will occur in two weeks at the beginning of the third quarter.

“We are frustrated and disheartened to have to make this decision and know it has a significant impact on our employees, their families, local businesses and the community,” Edgson continued. “We have set up a transition team and will work with our union to support our employees as we plan an orderly winddown.”

After the reduction, Canfor Pulp will have an annual capacity of 480,000 tonnes of market pulp.

The news release is here.

Statement from the Minister of Forests:

VICTORIA – Bruce Ralston, Minister of Forests, has released the following statement regarding Canfor’s recent decisions to close Polar Sawmill, curtail a pulp line at Northwood Pulp and suspend reinvestment in its Houston mill:

“We are disappointed by the business decision made by Canfor today and the impacts that will be felt by families and communities in northern British Columbia. We will be there to support the workers’ families and communities impacted by this corporate decision.

“Workers shouldn’t bear the brunt of commodity cycles as they have been forced to for years. That’s why our government has been focused on stabilizing the sector.

“We will continue our work with the sector through initiatives such as the BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund, which has led to investments in facilities throughout B.C., and the Forest Enhancement Society of BC supporting the pulp sector by bringing fibre in from the bush.

“The forest sector is a long-standing and foundational part of our province. We will keep working to ensure it supports workers and communities.”