The closure of the Crofton mill will reduce Domtar's annual pulp production by approximately 380,000 air-dried metric tons of northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp.
Dec. 2, 2025 - Domtar today announced it will permanently close operations at its pulp and paper mill in Crofton, British Columbia, Canada.
The decision will reduce Domtar's annual pulp production by approximately 380,000 air-dried metric tons of northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp.
The announcement will affect approximately 350 employees.
"The Crofton mill has been challenged for some time now," said Steve Henry, Domtar paper and packaging president. "Over the last 18 months, Crofton employees worked hard to reduce operational costs and they made some extraordinary gains. Unfortunately, continued poor pricing for pulp and lack of access to affordable fiber in BC necessitates the closure."
"These decisions are made with careful consideration and we recognize the hardship this decision will have on both our employees and the Cowichan Valley community as well as our business partners and the coastal forest sector," said Henry. "Our primary focus is on the safety and well-being of our employees as we navigate the coming weeks."
The site will continue to be managed in compliance with all applicable environmental (and other) laws, including under Domtar's existing Environmental Management Act permits.
Domtar said it's exploring a variety of possibilities for the future of the site.
The Crofton mill also has two paper machines — C2 and C3 — both of which ceased production in early December 2022 due to weakening Chinese paper markets and escalating costs of chemicals, energy and wood fiber. The machines had the combined capacity to produce 320,000 tonnes per year of printing / packaging papers.
The Crofton mill was a Paper Excellence operation. After Paper Excellence acquired Domtar and Resolute Forest Products, the three companies integrated operations and in October 2024 rebranded to became Domtar.
Domtar noted that it is committed to its remaining mills in BC and to working with the government and industry partners to improve access to affordable fiber.
Domtar is a leading, privately held manufacturer of diversified forest products, with a workforce of nearly 14,000 employees in more than 60 locations across North America. The company has an annual production capacity of 7.2 million metric tons of pulp, paper, packaging and tissue, and has an annual production capacity of about 3 billion board feet of lumber and other wood products. Domtar is owned by investor Jackson Wijaya.
SOURCE: Domtar