Mainebiz

V O L . X X V N O. I X A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 9 12 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E H O L I D A Y I N N Holiday Inn By t he Bay 8 8 S P R I N G S T R E E T • P O R T L A N D , M E • 0 4 1 0 1 A Stay By the Bay is Close, Comfortable, and Convenient to Everything from the Airport to the Old Port! • Stunning panoramas of Portland harbor and skyline • Specials & packages for fun, affordable escapes • Largest meeting & convention space downtown • Full-size indoor pool and fitness center • Surrounded by cultural attractions • Walk to world-class restaurants • On-site restaurant and catering • Close to Old Port shopping • Courtesy shuttle available • 239 rooms & suites I N N B Y T H E B A Y . C O M / 207-775-2311 x 2133 Madison paper mill could have rebirth under GO Lab B y J a m e s M c c a r t h y GO Lab Inc., the Belfast company receiving $750,000 from Maine Technology Institute in a competitive grant program for emerging forest technology compa- nies, plans to buy the shuttered Madison Paper Industries mill. The Morning Sentinel reported that the company has been looking at the site for about a year and recently came to an agreement to buy the 600,000 square-foot industrial facility owned by Somerset Acquisition LLC. Joshua Henry, president of GO Lab, told the Waterville newspaper that although the sale hasn't closed yet the company is hoping to take over ownership by the end of this year and start renovations in 2020. The company's goal, which received a significant boost with the announcement of the $750,000 awarded by MTI under the Emerging Technology Challenge for Maine's Forest Resources competitive grant program, is to create the first facility in North America making wood-based low-density fiberboard insulation. It is sold commercially in Europe, where it competes successfully with polystyrene-based foam insulation derived from fossil fuels, though it is an emerging technology in the United States. "I think it's a great market because the Northeast is the densest insulation market in the country," Henry told the Morning Sentinel. The Boulos Co. lists the former paper mill at $2.5 million. The parcel includes several large buildings on 12-plus acres, including the main mill, warehouse- and-shipping facilities, maintenance facilities, and other specialty buildings. Infrastructure includes a hydroelectric power plant, natural gas line, wastewater treatment plant, river water source and established industrial site. As reported by Mainebiz, MTI envisions that its $750,000 grant will enable GO Lab to scale up and that its wood fiber insulation has strong potential to transform the insulation market, possibly within 10 years. "Its insulation, made from wood fiber, is renewable, recyclable, non-toxic and performs as well or better than other available insulations," MTI stated in its news release. "GO Lab's production facility, located at the former UPM paper mill in Madison, will consume 180,000 tons of softwood chips annually, create 100 jobs and generate approximately $70 million in annual revenue." MTI stated that the ambitious goal behind the company's grant proposal is "to become the leader in manufacturing wood-dominant, environmentally-preferred building materials, and, in doing so, help fill the void left by the demise of paper manufacturing in Madison. That, in turn, would improve the long-term viability of Maine's rural, forest-based economy." B R I E F of former Gov. Paul LePage, represents a critical milestone as the controversial project makes its way through a regula- tory approval process that includes pend- ing decisions by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the Land Use Planning Commission. It also faces additional regulatory review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. e 145-mile transmission project would deliver 1,200 megawatts of renewable energy generated by Hydro-Quebec to Massachusetts. N O T E W O R T H Y N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N Dexter Town Council voted unani- mously to approve the Mayo Regional Hospital merger with Northern Light Health. It's the first vote from the 13 communities that make up Hospital Administrative District 4, the quasi- governmental agency with taxing power that owns and operates Mayo Regional Hospital. Mayo Regional Hospital is a 25-bed critical access hospital and health system in Dover-Foxcroft. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y T H E BO U L O S C O. GO Lab Inc. plans to buy former Madison Paper Industries mill shuttered since 2016.

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