TIMBER

Weyerhaeuser to Buy Hanson Unit: The Tacoma, Wash.-based company agreed to buy 661,000 acres of timberland and two sawmills in the Southeast for $500 million from Cavenham Forest Industries Inc., a unit of British conglomerate Hanson. The acquisition will swell Weyerhaeuser Co.’s land holdings to almost 6 million acres in the United States, cementing its position as the largest timberland holder in North America. In addition, the acquisition will boost Weyerhaeuser’s annual lumber production by 40%. For Hanson, a London-based diversified industrial company, the sale is part of a plan announced in January to split into four companies and raise $1.5 billion by selling all of Portland, Ore.-based Cavenham’s timberland and sawmill assets.