Temporary closure at Tolko’s Kelowna sawmill

KELOWNA – Tolko Industries has announced it will be temporarily closing its Kelowna sawmill for over a month.

According to a media release from Tolko Industries, the firm's Kelowna operation will take downtime from Aug. 6 to Sept. 15. The company does not say how many employees will be impacted.

"The high cost of logs and weak market conditions are still impacting our operating footprint in British Columbia," vice president of Solid Wood Troy Connolly said in the release. "Although we prefer to keep our locations in constant operation, we must manage the business responsibly and ensure we are sustainable for the future."

The Vernon-based company says employees were informed of the decision earlier today, July 30.

"We do not make these decisions without a lot of consideration," Connolly said. "We know we have great people working at this location and this is in no way a reflection on them or their commitment. However, we’re seeing a lot of challenging industry conditions in B.C. right now, which could continue for some time."

The company says the marketing and sales team will continue with their operations as usual.

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