Western Forest Products Declares Curtailments at Three Sawmills

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Western Forest Products Inc. today announced temporary curtailments in lumber production at three of its saw mills. The temporary curtailments are expected to reduce Western’s lumber production by additional 15 million board feet, said company press release.

The production at Duke Point sawmill will be curtailed for a period of two weeks. Also, the Saltair sawmill production will be curtailed for a period of one week. Both the above will be implemented during this month itself. In addition, the company plans to reduce operating levels at its Chemainus sawmill from 120 hours per week to as low as 80 hours per week. The employees at all the three mills are already informed about the cutbacks.

Commenting on the decision, Don Demens, President and CEO, Western Forest Products noted that the announced curtailments are necessary due to challenging market conditions. The industry is also impacted by the effects of high softwood lumber duties, especially on high value products. Demens added that the temporary production curtailments will help the company’s saw mills to align their production volumes to match with customer demand.

Western Forest Products is the latest lumber company to announce production cut. Many mills in the B.C region have cut their production on the back of weak lumber markets and high log costs. They include major lumber companies including Tolko Industries, Conifex Timber, West Fraser, Canfor Corp. and Interfor.