VAVENBY, B.C. — The province’s forests minister confirms Canfor has requested to sell its Vavenby sawmill tenures to Interfor. Doug Donaldson must okay the transfer before it can take place.
In a release, Canfor President and CEO Don Kayne says the closure is due to “the current and long-term log supply constraints we face in the Vavenby region, along with the high cost of fibre.”
Kayne adds, “[t]he ongoing depressed lumber markets have expedited this decision.”
Canfor says it has reached an agreement with Interfor to sell its Vavenby tenures for $60 million.
Interfor operates six mills in B.C. The closest to Vavenby is the Adams Lake mill near Chase. Other B.C. Interfor mills are located in Castlegar, Grand Forks, Maple Ridge, Delta and Campbell River.
In his own news release, Donaldson says he was “saddened” to hear of the Canfor Vavenby closure, and pledges provincial resources to help laid off employees.
Donaldson says the timber supply has been declining with the exhaustion of pine beetle-killed wood and record fire seasons. He blames weakened lumber markets and the ongoing softwood lumber dispute with the United States for furthering the industry’s challenges.
