The new Fort Saint James Forest Products sawmill shipped out its first load of lumber earlier this month.
In the summer of 2019, Hampton Lumber bought the facility from Confiex after they closed up shop in that community.
Hampton spokesperson, Kristin Rasmussen told Vista Radio in an emailed statement “It was a very challenging project for the construction team due to the pandemic, supply chain issues and the increasing costs of materials and services.”
However, Rasmussen noted the Fort Saint James facility has received a lot of support from the community while also establishing partnerships with First Nations.
The mill is only operating one shift during the start-up phase but is optimistic a second shift will be added once the team and mill are ready.