Port Alberni, BC–San Group has rolled its first log through a new sawmill that is the region’s first new one in 15 years. The high-tech hewsaw sawmill is engineered to process small logs, from 3- to 14-inches in diameter.
Having the new hewsaw line as a separate complimentary facility on the same property as the previously acquired Coulson sawmill allows San Group to process the whole tree, from small top to large butt diameter.
“In the Alberni Valley, certainly it has been a while since we’ve seen this type of investment in our sector,” said Port Alberni Mayor Sharie Minions, who watched the first log run through. “It is a very positive thing for our community.”
San Group CEO Kamal Sanghera estimates that the company will have spent between $120 million and $150 million on its Port Alberni operations by the end of 2020. That will eventually support some 250 jobs between three sawmills, a remanufacturing mill and shipping facilities.
Earlier this year, San Group bought the former Chalwood Forest Products facility in Port Alberni, which used to cut Yellow Cedar for the Japanese temple market until it closed more than a year ago. Now called San Forest Specialty, this plant processes longer logs, lower-grade wood and will be able to use more fiber that will be produced once San Group’s reman plant is operating. The company plans to upgrade its machinery so that the plant can cut Red Cedar, Fir, Sitka Spruce and Hemlock.
Since its founding in 1979, family-owned San Group has evolved from a small lumber remanufacturing facility to a multi-level forest products corporation. It exports forest products to more than 20 countries.
More information is available at www.sangroupinc.com.
