Brink Group Eager to Purchase Canfor Assets in Fort St. John, Vanderhoof, Houston, and Bear Lake, BC

John Brinks, the owner of the Brink Group of Companies, has made a proposal to Canfor to buy its mill operations and timber harvesting rights in Bear Lake, Vanderhoof, and Fort St. John, BC, and also acquire Canfor’s forest tenure in Houston, Vancouver Is Awesome reported (9-12-24).

Brink was already pursuing a bid to acquire Polar Sawmill at Bear Lake north of Prince George when Canfor announced last Wednesday that it intends to permanently close the Plateau Sawmill in Vanderhoof and Fort St. John Sawmill.

Brink has been trying to secure a timber supply to keep his finger-joint lumber plant on River Road operating and says he has to act soon to protect the jobs of his current workforce of 300 employees at Brink Forest Products, Vanderhoof Specialty Wood Products, and Pleasant Valley Remanufacturing in Houston.

A deal with Canfor would bring Brink’s mills up to full 600-worker capacity, and he says there would likely been enough work for 5,000 direct and indirect jobs. Without access to more timber, Brink says the company’s current mill operations are in jeopardy due to the latest round of Canfor closures.

“We are now in a position where we believe we are at risk,” said Brink. “I cannot sit by and wait for what will happen next. I think there will be further closures, so we have to take the initiative, I have no choice.”

Brink approached Canfor soon after the Polar closure was announced in May, when the company also decided to shut down a production line at Northwood Pulp in Prince George and suspend its plan to reinvest in the shuttered Houston sawmill.

Brink was all set to make a formal proposal to acquire the Polar mill and its tenure when Canfor indicated it was leaving Vanderhoof and Fort St. John. That prompted Brink to send a letter of intent to Canfor CEO Don Kayne on Sunday to make his pitch to buy the company’s assets in Fort St. John, Vanderhoof, and Houston.

Brink said he’s not interested in the outdated Houston mill but wants the timber rights for the area. If the deal comes to fruition, within five years he intends to build a new sawmill in Houston.

Having more timber would allow Brink to reopen his remanufacturing plant in Prince George and add a CLT plant to Brink Forest Products, which would then need a workforce of 600–650.

He hopes to have a deal with Canfor in place by April 1st, 2025.

In an email to the Citizen, Canfor spokesperson Mina Laudan said:

“As indicated in its September 4th announcement of the closure of the Plateau and Fort St. John operations, Canfor is committed to exploring opportunities to divest some of its northern BC tenure to support other BC manufacturers who are facing similar challenges accessing economic fiber to support their operations.

The company has received indications of interest from several parties and will be considering options and engaging in discussions as appropriate. As per normal business practice, further public disclosure will follow only if and when there is a material event to disclose.”