Drax to shut B.C. wood pellet plant by year’s end, says not ‘commercially viable’

Dan Caston, an employee of Drax, shows some of the wood pellets their plant produces in Gloster, Miss., Monday, May 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

WILLIAMS LAKE — A company operating a wood pellet plant in the British Columbia Interior says the facility will be shuttered by the end of the year due to a lack of available fibre.

U.K.-based Drax, which has faced accusations it burns old-growth B.C. timber for power generation in Britain, says it is shutting the Williams Lake plant due to closures and curtailments at nearby sawmills, as well as “the loss of a bid for key local supply.”

The company says the reduction in fibre availability means the plant is “no longer commercially viable,” and operations will be wound down until existing supply runs out.

Drax, which has operations across B.C. and Alberta, says 30 workers are employed at the Williams Lake facility, and a support plan is being implemented in light of the closure announcement.

Environmental group Stand.earth has accused of burning 250-year-old B.C. trees, while Drax said this week that some of its fibre comes from “low-grade roundwood,” or logs, that would otherwise “likely be controllably burned.”

The Canadian forestry sector has been hard hit by what’s described as weak market conditions and economic uncertainty, including tariffs from the United States.

Last month, Interfor Corp. announced an increase to its planned lumber production cuts across its operations for the fourth quarter, including for its operations in B.C. and Ontario.

The situation has prompted Ottawa to announce a new suite of supports for the domestic sector, including an extra $500 million in loan guarantees for the softwood lumber industry.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2025.