San Group Opens New State-of-the-Art Small Diameter Log Sawmill in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island

The San Group, the Langley, B.C.-based company, is putting the finishing touches on the first new sawmill to be built on the B.C. coast in 15 years. The greenfield sawmill/reman operation is located in Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island. Unlike most mill operations on the B.C. coast, the new Port Alberni sawmill is specifically set up to handle smaller, second growth timber.

The small log HewSaw-equipped mill is designed to produce 120 million board feet a year from logs as small as three-inches in diameter. These small diameter logs are now being fully utilized rather than being left in the bush. The reman plant at Port Alberni will handle from 80 to 90 million board feet of that production.

In early-June, the new small log mill was operating on one shift, but there were plans to ramp that up to two shifts, once scanning equipment is installed. A good portion of the lumber produced by San Group in Port Alberni is used on Vancouver Island, reducing transportation, and further reducing CO2 emissions.