New OSB mill construction in Prince Albert set for 2025

After years of delays and planning, a new oriented strand board (OSB) mill is coming to Prince Albert.

After years of delays and planning, a new oriented strand board (OSB) mill is coming to Prince Albert.

"We're not saying we're getting an OSB plant," Prince Albert Mayor Greg Dionne said. "We now have one."

The province announced the new $543 million plant Thursday, which is expected to start construction in 2025 and will open in 2027.

One Sky Forest Products will build and operate the mill in partnership with multiple First Nations and Indigenous companies who have invested into One Sky.

After first announcing timber allocations in 2021 to help get the mill built, One Sky CEO Brian Fehr says too much time passed and the company instead took up an opportunity in Alabama. Thursday's announcement of 1.2 million cubic metres of timber and current market conditions lead Fehr to believe the mill will be built soon.

"I don't want to ever see Scott Moe if this doesn't go ahead like I'm serious," Fehr said. "I wouldn't be standing here if I didn't believe I was going to go ahead."

Indigenous Forestry Investments was formed by the four shareholders of One Sky -- Montreal Lake Business Ventures, Meadow Lake Tribal Council, Big River First Nation, and Tatanka Oyate Holdings -- to bring a unified Indigenous voice to the communities they represent.