Boise Cascade Operation At Elgin Is Up In Air 

Boise Cascade has issued a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice to its employees at its operations in Elgin, Ore. “We issued the notice in order to ensure that all employees are aware it is possible the mill will have to reduce production levels beginning on or about January 1, 2021,” the company states.

While the demand and pricing for plywood has been favorable during 2020 and the Elgin operation was profitable during the second and third quarters, Boise states that its ongoing ability to use Elgin’s waste and storm water has been modified by the Oregon Dept. of Environmental Quality (ODEQ). The new permit constraints create uncertainty around the future operations at the site, according to Boise, which has significantly reduced its purchases of logs for the Elgin operation considering the uncertainty created by the change in environmental constraints and possible curtailment. “At the current time, we do not expect to have enough logs available to operate throughout the entire winter even if the open concerns with ODEQ are favorably resolved before the end of the year,” the company states.

The Elgin facility currently produces approximately 10% of Boise’s dry veneer production, the majority of which is sold as plywood and represents approximately 16% of Boise’s plywood sales.

The company says it will continue to evaluate plywood market conditions, log supply availability, operating costs, environmental permits and other factors influencing the long-term viability of the Elgin plywood operation as the situation warrants.