Weyerhaeuser is selling 630,000 acres of timberland in Montana to a private timberland investment company for $145 million in cash. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2020.
“The sale of our Montana acreage is part of our ongoing effort to strategically optimize our timberland portfolio,” Devin Stockfish, president and CEO of Weyerhaeuser, said in a public statement. “The transaction includes a diverse mix of softwood species and an existing 110,000-acre conservation easement which preserves public access in perpetuity.”
Weyerhaeuser said its three manufacturing facilities in Montana are not affected by the sale.
“Our manufacturing operations in Montana continue to deliver strong results,” said Stockfish. “Our people have done an outstanding job driving improvement in safety and operational excellence over the past several years, and they also do terrific work to support the communities where we operate.”
Weyerhaeuser owns or controls approximately 12 million acres of timberlands in the U.S. The company also manufactures wood products and generate $7.5 billion in net sales in 2018. The announcement of the sale of Montana timberlands follows after Weyerhaueser sold 555,000 acres of Michigan timberland to The Lyme Company in September.
