Interfor has announced a 17 per cent reduction in lumber output in the fourth quarter, but it’s not clear exactly what that means for its Grand Forks and Castlegar sawmills.
The company says it will produce about 200 million board feet fewer due to economic conditions and market uncertainty that have reduced demand.
In a news release, the company said the temporary reduction will be spread across each of its operating region, “primarily timed around U.S. Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday periods, and used to accelerate ongoing capital and maintenance projects.”
The company says its current inventories are normal, and should be enough to meet demand through the end of the year. Interfor says it expects to resume its normal operating schedule in January.
A company spokeswoman said in an email that she was “not able to disclose any specifics on a mill by mill basis.”
“While there are not expected to be any permanent employee layoffs, the downtime will be scheduled around the holidays in order to minimize the temporary impacts on the employees,” Svetlana Kayumova said.