ASHLAND, Maine — The EcoShel cedar shingle plant in Ashland is closing and planning a business partnership in Canada, due to new tariffs on Canadian lumber, according to the company’s founder.
The Georgia-based company opened its Ashland plant in 2014, near the former Fraser Papers mill, with the aim of manufacturing advanced cedar shingle building products with local white cedar and imported red cedar from British Columbia.
In an email, EcoShel founder and CEO Bryan Kirkey confirmed the news of the closure.
The Trump Administration’s tariff on Canadian softwood lumber “is forcing us to move our shingle production to Canada,” Kirkey said. “We’re working on a partnership with a BC company,” he said, referring to Canadian province of British Columbia.
In April, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced that it would be levelling tariffs ranging from 3 to 24 percent on imported Canadian lumber, after decades of complaints from American timber companies who say their northern competitors are unfairly subsidized.
While major American lumber companies have cheered the move and long complained about cheap Canadian wood products in U.S. markets, the tariffs are a mixed bag for Maine forest product companies, some of the largest of which are owned by Canadian corporations.
Kirkey did not provide further information about EcoShel’s financial situation or future plans, but said that more details about the closure and the company’s plans will be forthcoming.
It is not clear how many people work at the EcoShel plant in Ashland currently, or if they will be offered jobs at a new Canadian operation.
EcoShel originally came to Ashland in 2014 to be close to raw materials and New England markets for cedar shingles. When it opened, the company said it expected to employ about 65 people.
The company also worked with the University of Maine’s Advanced Manufacturing Center to design a high-efficiency production system for the cedar shingles.
EcoShel is currently among 11 forest product companies operating in and around Ashland, including Moosewood Millworks, Northeast Pellets, ReEnergy and two large lumber mills, Maibec and JD Irving.
This story will be updated if additional information becomes available.
