West Fraser Timber recently reported today the third quarter results of 2026. The Company today also announced that it will indefinitely curtail its Huguley oriented strand board (OSB) mill in Lanett, Alabama and lumber mill in Leola, Arkansas.

These curtailments are expected to take effect in the fourth quarter following orderly wind-downs.

These decisions are the result of continued weakness in demand for wood products used in new home construction and repair and renovation applications. These actions are expected to reduce West Fraser's OSB capacity by 500 million square feet (3/8-inch) and SYP capacity by 225 million board feet, both on an annual basis.

“We expect to record an asset impairment loss between $200 million to $220 million in the fourth quarter of 2026 in connection with these indefinite curtailments”, West Fraser says in a press statement.

Commentary

"Over the last quarter, housing affordability continued to be a key constraint for wood products demand, which remains soft," said Sean McLaren, West Fraser's President and CEO. "We were also impacted by higher energy-related input costs. Our teams responded by running mills to demand, reducing inventory and controlling costs.

“With no near-term visibility on an improvement in demand, we took further steps today to align our supply with customer demand through the indefinite curtailments of our Huguley OSB mill in Lanett, Alabama and our lumber mill in Leola, Arkansas”.
  
Source: pulppapernews.com