Three Canadian forestry companies announced production cuts on Monday, a reflection of falling demand for lumber and paper.
West Fraser Timber said it was undertaking "market-related curtailments" at some of its B.C. sawmills, which will reduce production by an additional 35 million board feet. The company had previously announced cuts at Canadian facilities of approximately 435 million board feet over a full year.
Cuts at the company's plants in the U.S. south amount to 600 million board feet a year.
Vancouver-based West Fraser also said it was further curtailing production at its two bleached chemi-thermo-mechanical pulp mills, which are already running at just 75 per cent capacity.
The mills are in Slave Lake, Alta., and Quesnel, B.C.
There will also be "further curtailments" at the company's MDF (panel and plywood) plants, which are also operating below normal capacity.
No details were released about the pulp or panel cuts.
Nova Scotia, Quebec also hit
The AbitibiBowater newsprint mill in Brooklyn, N.S., will shut down for five weeks, starting Dec. 21.
A notice to about 300 employees mentioned weak demand and high manufacturing costs.
The SFK Pulp Fund said it will shut down its mill in Saint-Félicien, Que., for 20 days starting Dec. 19.
"This curtailment reflects the declining pulp demand we are facing as our customers continue to be affected by the economic slowdown worldwide," Pierre Gabriel Côté, SFK's president and CEO, said in a statement.
The closing will reduce output by 20,000 tonnes.
With files from the Canadian Press
