Interfor Reports Weak Lumber Pricing, Focuses on Liquidity and Leverage Reduction

Lumber producer takes steps to weather market volatility, including closing high-cost facilities and advancing key mill project.

Published on Feb. 16, 2026

Interfor (TSE:IFP) executives told investors the company is focused on protecting liquidity and reducing leverage as it navigates what management described as historically weak lumber pricing and ongoing market volatility. The company took 'decisive portfolio actions' in 2025, including permanently closing two high-cost facilities in the U.S. South and adjusting operating postures at several mills to better align production with demand. Interfor also advanced the final phase of its Thomaston Mill project in Georgia, with commissioning of the new sawmill expected in early March 2026.

Why it matters

Interfor's actions highlight the challenges facing the lumber industry amid historically weak pricing and market volatility. The company's focus on liquidity, leverage reduction, and cost competitiveness through facility optimizations and strategic investments aims to position it for long-term sustainability in a volatile market environment.

The details

On the revenue side, Interfor reported weaker realized selling prices on average due to slightly lower market pricing in most regions, a full quarter of higher countervailing and antidumping duties, and the introduction of a 10% Section 232 tariff in October. On the cost side, production cost per unit improved 4%, as higher conversion costs from downtime were more than offset by positive inventory valuation adjustments as lumber prices improved toward the end of the year. Despite the negative adjusted EBITDA, cash flow from operations was break even for the quarter due to working capital recovery driven by reduced inventories and lower receivables.

  • Interfor permanently closed two high-cost facilities in the U.S. South in 2025.
  • Interfor expects to commission the new sawmill at its Thomaston Mill project in Georgia in early March 2026.

The players

Interfor

An international forest products company that produces and sells lumber, timber, and other wood products. The company operates sawmills and harvests timber on forest land owned by the Canadian government.

Ian Fillinger

President and CEO of Interfor.

Bart Bender

Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Interfor.

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What they’re saying

“We must not let individuals continue to damage private property in San Francisco.”

— Robert Jenkins, San Francisco resident (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Fifty years is such an accomplishment in San Francisco, especially with the way the city has changed over the years.”

— Gordon Edgar, grocery employee (Instagram)

What’s next

Interfor expects lower capital spending ahead, with total capital spending in 2026 expected to be CAD 75 million to CAD 80 million, and preliminary estimates for 2027 around CAD 60 million, focused 'almost entirely on maintenance.'

The takeaway

Interfor's focus on protecting liquidity, reducing leverage, and improving cost competitiveness through facility optimizations and strategic investments reflects the challenges facing the lumber industry amid historically weak pricing and market volatility. The company's actions aim to position it for long-term sustainability in a volatile market environment.