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Barge Forest Products Invests $8.3M in Mississippi Sawmill Expansion
Barge Forest Products will invest more than $8.3 million to expand its Macon, Mississippi sawmill, adding a new production line designed to improve efficiency, increase log recovery and expand annual lumber production capacity.
Key Points
- Investment: More than $8.3 million.
- Location: Macon, Noxubee County, Mississippi.
- New equipment: Optimized edging and twin horizontal resaw capabilities.
- Objective: Improve efficiency, log recovery and annual production capacity.
- Completion: Expansion is targeted for October 2027.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Barge Forest Products is investing more than $8.3 million to expand its sawmill operations in Macon, Mississippi, adding new processing capacity for southern yellow pine lumber.
The company is constructing a new facility that will house a production line featuring optimized edging and twin horizontal resaw capabilities.
The upgrades are intended to improve processing efficiency, increase log recovery and significantly expand the sawmill's annual production capacity, according to the Mississippi Development Authority.
Expansion Targets Better Log Recovery
Barge Forest Products specializes in high-quality southern yellow pine lumber, with a particular focus on longer timber lengths used in construction.
The new line is designed to help the mill extract more usable lumber from available timber while improving production efficiency.
Jason Ebert, executive vice president of Operations at Barge Forest Products, said the investment will strengthen the company's competitiveness while allowing the mill to make better use of available timber resources.
“This project will strengthen our competitiveness, improve efficiency and significantly increase log recovery.”
ScrapMonster Edge: More Lumber From the Same Timber Input
The log-recovery component is particularly important for sawmill economics.
Optimized edging and resaw equipment can help mills extract more saleable lumber from each log by improving how boards are sized and recovered during processing.
Barge has not disclosed the exact increase in board-foot capacity expected from the project, so the operational benefit is best described as improved recovery and higher production capacity rather than assigning an unsupported output figure.
Mississippi Provides Project Support
The Mississippi Development Authority is assisting the expansion through a loan guarantee program and the state's Mississippi Flexible Tax Incentive, or MFLEX, program.
Noxubee County is also providing assistance.
The state announcement did not disclose the value of the loan guarantee or tax incentives associated with the project.
It also did not announce a specific number of new jobs tied to the expansion.
Southern Yellow Pine Remains Core Product
Barge Forest Products' Macon operation produces southern yellow pine lumber for construction markets, including longer-length products.
Founded in 1985, the company serves customers across North America as well as the Caribbean, North Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
The new production line is expected to strengthen the Macon operation's ability to compete in those markets while making more efficient use of Mississippi's timber supply.
Expansion Scheduled for Completion in October 2027
Barge Forest Products expects the project to be completed in October 2027.
The company and the Mississippi Development Authority have not yet disclosed equipment commissioning dates, expected production volumes after startup or a detailed construction timetable.
ScrapMonster Market Read
The Barge Forest Products investment adds to ongoing sawmill modernization across the U.S. South, where producers continue to invest in equipment that can increase recovery and output without relying solely on new greenfield capacity.
For Barge, the key measure will be how much additional usable lumber the new line can recover from existing timber inputs once the expansion begins operating in 2027.
Courtesy: WJTV
