Brascan Corporation is to buy Weyerhaeuser‘s British Columbia Pacific coast timberlands and mills for about C$1.2bn.
The deal, expected to be completed during the second quarter, involves some 635,000 acres of private timberlands, 3.6 million m3 of annual harvesting rights from government forests, five sawmills and two remanufacturing plants.
The investment by asset management firm Brascan is intended to help fulfill its aim of having C$2bn in timber assets under management. Brascan admitted that the mills and public harvesting rights may be sold on to Western Forest Products, which it owns a stake in.
Weyerhaeuser will use the sale proceeds to reduce its debt.
