WEYBURN – A ground breaking flax straw processing facility is coming to Weyburn, bringing over 30 full-time jobs and injecting more than $3 million annually in wages into the local economy.
Prairie Clean Enterprises (PCE), a Saskatchewan-based agricultural clean-tech company, will operate the facility, which will transform flax straw into industrial-grade fibre and pellets for animal care and consumer products. The project is also expected to generate dozens of indirect jobs in trucking, baling, and logistics, while creating new supply contracts for area farmers.
“We intend to buy the vast majority of our straw from as close to Weyburn as we can,” said Mark Cooper, PCE’s president and CEO. “It’s good economics for us. We anticipate that's where the best straw is going to come from. There's also skilled workforce, good training opportunities right here in the community.”
A first-of-its-kind facility
The Weyburn plant will be the world’s first facility of its kind, serving as a model for sustainable value-added manufacturing and rural innovation. PCE has already secured 34,000 acres of flax straw under contract and plans to source 60,000 acres at full capacity.
PCE chose Weyburn after looking at Estevan and other areas partly because of the soil in the area. In addition, the company’s founder, Trevor Thomas, wanted the facility to be a rural-based company.
“Weyburn is the perfect home for our flagship facility,” said Cooper. “We’re honoured to be partnering with the city, its people, and local farmers to bring this project to life…and to show the world what Saskatchewan can do when innovation meets agriculture.”
Construction set for May
PCE is working with the City of Weyburn and expects to have the building permit applications in by the end of April. Construction at PCE’s site at 54 Queen Street will begin in May. Equipment installation is scheduled for August, with production starting by September.
The company has already lined up buyers for its fibre and pellets, including European clients eager for an alternative to French suppliers.
“We have buyers from Europe that are going to buy one of our products,” said Cooper.
Solving a farmer’s challenge
Flax straw has long been a headache for farmers, often requiring costly disposal. It costs time and money for the farmers to deal with so it actually suppresses the volume of flax that’s growing, said Cooper.
While past attempts to repurpose the straw have failed, he said PCE will succeed.
“This time, it’s different. We’re the company that’s going to deliver the solution—right here in Weyburn.”
From biomass to new markets
Originally founded as Prairie Clean Energy in 2020, the company initially focused on biomass pellets for industrial energy. While that remains a long-term goal, PCE has pivoted to high-demand markets like horse bedding, cat litter, and specialty paper pulp.
Meanwhile, European paper manufacturers—frustrated by limited supply chains—are eager for PCE’s flax fibre, said Cooper.
Hank Froese, vice-president, farmer relations and processing for PCE, will oversee the operations.
“He comes with several decades of doing a similar process in Winkler, Manitoba,” said Cooper.
Dan Seminuk, facility manager for Weyburn’s PCE, will run the facility. He has worked in pellet facilities and others in British Columbia, and worked as an industrial electrician.
Funding and future growth
PCE has raised over $4 million and secured financing partnerships, including a line of credit with Waiver and Credit Union. Additional equipment funding is being arranged with Farm Credit Canada (FCC).
PCE was founded in 2020 by Thomas to address agricultural waste and the global wood shortage by converting flax straw—previously burned as waste in Saskatchewan—into sustainable biomass fuel and other high-value products. Recognizing its potential, Thomas established PCE to connect flax farmers with industries seeking eco-friendly fuel alternatives.
