LP signs project agreement to build OSB mill in Clarke county, Alabama

Jun 15, 2005. /Lesprom Network/. Louisiana-Pacific Corporation signed a project agreement with Clarke county, Alabama, the Clarke County Industrial Development Board and the State of Alabama to build a state-of-the-art oriented strand board mill in Clarke county, Alabama. LP had previously announced its intent to build the mill with the signing of a memorandum of understanding related to the project on December 8, 2004. The project agreement executed on Tuesday provides for LP to construct an OSB facility at the newest industrial park located in Clarke county, near Thomasville, Alabama. The first phase of plant development is planned to begin in the third quarter of 2005, with production start-up slated for late 2007. The plant will employ at least 130 people, and have an annual OSB production capacity of more than 700 million square feet. Jeff Wagner, LP's vice president of OSB, said, "With this agreement now in place, we are looking forward to moving ahead with this important project. The new Clarke county mill is key to our commitment to maintaining LP's leadership position in the structural panels industry with state-of-the-art technology, low-cost manufacturing capacity and the highest quality for our customers." Additionally, LP announced on Tuesday that it has named Steve Doffitt as plant manager for the new mill, effective July 1, 2005. Doffitt is currently plant manager at LP's Jasper, Texas, OSB mill; he will be directly involved in the new mill's construction and oversee its start-up, commissioning and operation. LP is a premier supplier of building products, delivering innovative, high-quality commodity and specialty products to its retail, wholesale, homebuilding and industrial customers.