West Fraser To Sell Two Pulp Mills

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. and Atlas Holdings have announced the signing of a definitive agreement for the sale of West Fraser’s Quesnel River Pulp mill in Quesnel, British Columbia and its Slave Lake Pulp mill in Slave Lake, Alberta to Atlas. Atlas owns and operates several pulp, paper and wood products businesses in Canada and the U.S.

The agreement includes related woodlands operations and timber holdings in Alberta and a long-term fiber supply agreement for the Quesnel facility.

Upon closing of the transaction, the Quesnel River and Slave Lake pulp mills will be operated by Millar Western Forest Products, which joined the Atlas family of manufacturing and distribution businesses in 2017. Millar Western is a more than 100-year-old Canadian forest products company headquartered in Edmonton with existing pulp mill operations in Alberta, establishing a strong foundation and a bright future for the Quesnel River and Slave Lake pulp mills.

Combined total cash proceeds from the sale are $120 million USD.

“This transaction will provide the dedicated and skilled teams at Quesnel River and Slave Lake with a solid future. Our team intends to continue investing in these high-quality mills and we look forward to collectively strengthening our product offerings and value proposition to the global BCTMP marketplace,” says David Anderson, CEO, Millar Western.

The transaction is anticipated to close following completion of customary regulatory reviews and satisfaction of customary closing conditions. TD Securities Inc. is acting as exclusive financial advisor and McMillan LLP is acting as legal advisor to West Fraser. Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP is acting as legal advisor to Atlas.