Tembec has announced production curtailments at its Elko and Canal Flats sawmills and associated planer mills, resulting in a production decline of 24,000 million board feet.
The North American integrated forest products company said that the initial three-month curtailments were in response to a number of issues in the US, including the strength of the Canadian dollar and the housing US market.
The reduction will take place through a reduced work week and will begin on January 21 at Canal Flats having been in place from January 14 at the Elko facility.
“These curtailments are being taken due to the sharp decline in demand for lumber given poor housing market conditions in the US, low lumber prices and the impact of the high valued Canadian dollar relative to the US currency,” said Dennis Rounsville, executive vice-president and president of Tembec’s Forest Products Group.
Tembec said it was working to implement a work sharing programme to reduce the impact of reduced shifts on affected employees.
