Despite its vast and mature forests, Saskatchewan forestlands have been under-utilized. That is until now. Over the past several weeks, the province has announced a reallocation of its forest resources, primarily located north of Saskatoon, and that will result in sizeable forest industry investments. Those forestland reallocations are expected, over the next two years, to lead to over a $1 billion dollars (CAD) in new investments in Saskatchewan’s forest industry.
News in structural panels
West Fraser Completes Acquisition of OSB Mill in U.S. South
West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. announced today (12-6-21) that it has completed the acquisition of the Georgia Pacific oriented strandboard (OSB) mill located near Allendale, South Carolina. The original news release of for purchase was issued on October 26, 2021.
After Temporary Curtailment, LP’s Peace Valley OSB Mill Back to Operating at Full Capacity
During the forestry industry downturn in 2019, Louisiana Pacific (LP) made the difficult decision to temporarily curtail production at its Peace Valley OSB mill located in Fort St. John, B.C. LP’s goal was to keep the mill in “ready state,” and LP kept a small team of 20 employees at the mill.
One Sky Forest Products and Paper Excellence Sign Co-Location Agreement
In September, One Sky Forest Products announced its intention to build and operate a new oriented strandboard (OSB) operation at an existing Prince Albert, Saskatchewan mill site. One Sky Forest Products took a step forward on Tuesday (11-30-21) in bringing that operation to fruition with the announcement that it has signed an agreement with Paper Excellence, the company behind the restart of the local pulp mill.
West Fraser Temporarily Eliminates Weekend Shift at Williams Lake Plywood Mill
According to West Fraser corporate spokesperson Joyce Wagenaar, “As a result of the significant flooding in southern B.C., the province is now facing serious transportation and logistics issues impacting highways, rail, and our ports.” West Fraser’s Williams Lake mills will be operating at its usual Monday through Friday schedules; however, the company is temporarily curtailing its weekend shift at its plywood mill.
West Fraser to Announces Purchase of Georgia Pacific’s Allendale, South Carolina OSB Mill
West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. Announced today (10-26-21) that it has entered into agreement to acquire Georgia Pacific’s oriented strand board (OSB) mill located near Allendale, South Carolina for approximately $280 million (USD). The transaction is expected to close following the successful completion of U.S. regulatory review and satisfaction of customary conditions.
One Sky Forest Products Moving Forward with Development of OSB Plant in Prince Albert, Canada
One Sky Forest Products Ltd., working together with its Indigenous partners, is moving forward with the development of a best-in-class, low-cost commodity Oriented Strand Board (OSB) facility in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Canada. Construction of the new facility is scheduled to start in Q3 2022, with start up targeted for 2023.
Segezha Group Building New Plywood Processing Shop and Upgrading Existing Production Lines at Vyataky Plywood Mill
The Segezha Group has announced that it is investing approximately RUB 5 billion ($69 million) in constructing a new plywood processing shop and is upgrading their existing production lines at its Vyataky Plywood Mill in Kirov, Russia.
West Fraser Announces Output Reductions at Lumber and Panel Mills during Q3
West Fraser announced the reduction of between 5% and 10% of output during Q3.
Tolko Industries’ Athabasca OSB Mill Receives Upgrade with Installation of New Ripline
Tolko Industries’ Athabasca OSB mill, located in Slave Lake, Alberta, has the largest continuous OSB press in North America and the only continuous press in North America to produce OSB and Laminated Strand Lumber (LSL) on the same line. Recently, the Athabasca received an upgrade with the addition of a new ripline.