Canfor Decides Against Rebuilding North Central Plywood Mill


Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, 30 July 2008 – Canfor Corporation (TSX:CFP) announced today that it has decided not to rebuild its North Central Plywood plant in Prince George, British Columbia, which was destroyed by fire on 26 May 2008. The insurance proceeds received will be reinvested in the company’s existing facilities. Consistent with this decision, the board of directors today approved the expenditure of CAD 13.5 million to construct a wood residue energy facility at Canfor’s Fort St. John, British Columbia, sawmill.

Jim Shepard, Canfor’s president and CEO, said this was a very difficult decision for the company. “Unfortunately, after considering the changing nature of our available fiber supply and expected future market conditions, the projected economic benefits were not sufficient to justify the significant capital cost of the rebuild.”

Canfor is a leading integrated forest products company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, with interests in facilities in Alberta, British Columbia, and Quebec in Canada, and North Carolina, South Carolina, and Washington in the United States. The company is the largest producer of softwood lumber in Canada while also producing OSB, plywood, remanufactured lumber products and specialized wood products. Canfor also owns a 50.2% interest in Canfor Pulp Limited Partnership, which is one of the largest producers of northern softwood kraft pulp in Canada and a leading producer of high performance kraft paper. Canfor shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol CFP.