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West Fraser announces closure and elimination of a shift

West Fraser has announced its intention to permanently close its Chasm lumber mill and eliminate the third shift from its 100 Mile House lumber mill.

The company says both will occur during the third quarter of 2019.

“We sincerely regret the impact this decision will have on our employees, their families and the affected communities. We will be making efforts to mitigate the effects of this business decision, including opportunities for affected employees to transition to other company locations,” said Ray Ferris, President and Chief Operating Officer of West Fraser.

Ferris says the decision is the result of well-documented timber supply constraints owing to B.C.’s devastating Mountain Pine Beetle infestation, recent record wildfires, price declines in lumber markets and high saw log costs…

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“As a result of reduced harvesting levels set by the Chief Forester of B.C., there is insufficient timber supply to support the current lumber production capacity of the lumber mills in these locations. Today’s decision better aligns West Fraser’s production in the region with current timber supply.”

Feris says 176 employees will be impacted at Chasm and approximately 34 employees at 100 Mile House.

Lumber production is anticipated to be permanently reduced by approximately 314 million board feet as a result of this announcement.

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