The New Brunswick government has submitted a bid to purchase privately owned timberlands associated with the wood supply of AV Nackawic's dissolving pulp mill.
According to Natural Resources Minister John Herron, the province has also hired consulting firm AFRY to assess options for the facility's future, including potential buyers.
The proposed land acquisition is intended to preserve access to wood fibre for future industrial activities in the region. The value of the provincial bid remains confidential under a non-disclosure agreement.
The offer does not include the mill itself, which is scheduled to idle production on November 4.
Major Timberland Portfolio Offered for Sale
The privately owned forestlands are being marketed by real estate firm LandVest under the name Project Riverwood. The portfolio covers 106,574 acres, or approximately 43,130 hectares, primarily located in York and Carleton counties in New Brunswick.
According to LandVest, the timberlands have historically been managed in conjunction with the AV Nackawic pulp mill. The sale process sets a December 17, 2026, deadline for submitting sealed bids.
However, the exact area covered by the provincial offer remains unclear. The Canadian Press reported a bid involving 178 square kilometres, or 17,800 hectares, without explaining the difference from the total acreage advertised by LandVest.
AFRY Hired to Assess Mill Options
Separately from the timberland bid, the provincial government has engaged AFRY to examine options for the mill's future, including potential interest from prospective buyers.
The initiative comes amid continued uncertainty about whether production could resume. On October 16, New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt described a restart as highly unlikely.
In September, AV Group NB announced plans to temporarily idle production, without providing a restart date.
The mill employs approximately 350 people and has an annual production capacity of about 190,000 tonnes of dissolving-grade pulp, primarily used in textile manufacturing.
Production is still scheduled to stop on November 4. The timberland bid and AFRY's assessment represent two separate government initiatives, with no agreement to restart the mill announced to date.
