Langley forestry firm acquires Delta’s Acorn sawmill from Interfor

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San Group, an independent forestry firm based in Langley, has struck a deal to buy an under-utilized sawmill on the Fraser River in Delta from larger competitor Interfor Corp., the companies have announced.

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The purchase price wasn’t disclosed by either company, but San Group is acquiring Interfor’s Acorn mill, which primarily cuts specialty timbers for traditional Japanese home construction. The buyers intends to continue milling specialty timbers for Japanese housing, while integrating mill output into its own value-added manufacturing.

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“Acorn’s complementary swilling technology, customer base and geographic footprint make it an excellent fit with our value-added business model,” said San Group co-ower Kamal Sanghera.

Fellow co-owner Suki Danghera added that the purchase “is a compelling transaction,” that is immediately valuable to San Group by allowing it to connect Acorn’s production capacity with its existing facilities.

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It also provides “current and new employees an opportunity to join a company whose philosophy is focused on increasing the longevity of our forests through value-added manufacturing.”

In a news release, Interfor said the Acorn mill was built in 1963 and acquired by Interfor in 2001 from Primex Forest Products.

Acorn has a two-shift rated capacity of 140 million board-feet of lumber per year, but has only been running one shift “for many years.” In 2021 its production was 56 million board-feet of lumber.

It is a divergence in investment strategies of the two firms, with Interfor’s most recent acquisitions in Ontario and the Southern United States and San Group keeping its focus in BC

For the San Group, its purchase of Acorn caps off $200 million of investment in the province since 2020, which saw the company buy one mill in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island and build a new facility there designed to cut smaller, second-growth trees.

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In a news release, the Sangheras said San Group will hire all of Acorn’s existing employees, and noted their historical connection to Interfor. One of San Group’s first major deals was the purchase of a specialty mill from Interfor founder Bill Sauder in the early 1990s.

“We are humbled to now have the opportunity to purchase Acorn, one of the BC coastal region’s premier saw milling facilities,” said Suki Sanghera.

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