Market conditions force two-week closure of Williams Lake sawmill, says Tolko

Photo: Tolko

Vernon's Tolko Industries is shutting down its Lakeview sawmill in Williams Lake for two weeks.

The unscheduled downtime is due to "significantly high log costs in B.C. and a lack of available economic fibre," the company said in a press release Monday.

Vice-president of solid wood Troy Connolly said that "continue(s) to impact our ability to run at a higher capacity."

"While our goal is to ensure consistency and stability for all of our operations, the steep decline in lumber demand and upward cost pressures in the province unfortunately make this a necessary decision."

Employees have been notified that the last day of production will be Friday, May 19. Operations are scheduled resume on Monday, June 5.

Lakeview's shipping and planer operations will continue to operate during the downtime.

"This downtime affects our employees, and we do not take this action lightly," said Connolly.

"We will continue to support our employees during this challenging time."

The closure affects 50 employees and will reduce output by 10 million board feet of lumber.

Vice-president of marketing and sales Pino Pucci said the company will "do our best to minimize any impacts" on customers.