Eugene Mill To Close, 84 To Lose Jobs

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) – A Chilean company has notified Oregon state officials that it will shutter a fiberboard mill it operates in Eugene and lay off all 84 workers on May 1.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports Arauco North America said the closure results from an “economic imbalance” in the U.S. market for medium density fiberboard.

The company said it will shift its Eugene production work to its other U.S. facilities.

The Eugene facility opened in 1962 as a particleboard mill, according to the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce, and became a fiberboard mill in 1995.

The chamber says Arauco uses local lumber mill byproducts and converts them into fiberboard for home construction.