The Levis, Que., Canada-based company Maibec has reached a deal to buy Fraser Timber’s lumber mill in Masardis, a deal expected to close by the end of the year. Maibec announced the deal with the mill that employs about 135 people in a statement this week. It did not disclose the price.

 

"This acquisition gives Maibec its first place of business in the U.S., and represents an important milestone in our growth," said Francois Tardif, Maibec’s president. "Among other things, the mill’s geographic location will allow us to improve our access to key U.S. markets."

 

The announcement of the acquisition comes four years after Fraser Papers emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to restart after the recession’s impact on the housing market sank demand for building timbers from its Ashland and Masardis mills.

 

Maibec said that it will start transferring permits required for it to take over the lumber mill in the coming weeks. The Masardis mill can produce more than 100 million board ft. of softwood lumber annually.

 

Maibec was founded in 1946 and has about 700 employees outside of the U.S., with production facilities in St-Pamphile de L’Islet and Saint-Theophile de Beauce, Quebec. The firm’s various operations produce wood siding, lumber, and horticultural mulches.