Recent mill closures have been “gut-wrenching” as the forestry industry faces tough market conditions, the chief executive of Canfor Corp. said Thursday.
The Vancouver-based company announced earlier this week that it’s permanently closing its Fox Creek sawmill in northwestern Alberta because there is not enough fibre in the region to sustain it long-term. U.S. tariffs and weak markets have further eroded its viability, it said.
Two weeks earlier, Canfor said it would shutter its pulp mill in Prince George, B.C., citing a market oversupply that has depressed prices. In May, it announced the permanent closure of two sawmills in southern Sweden due to an imbalance between fibre availability and production capacity….