Mainebiz

V O L . X X I N O. X M AY 1 8 , 2 0 1 5 10 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 meaning the connections were not properly installed. e company has replaced more than 60 of those connections, leaving a little under two dozen to be fi xed, as of May 1. Summit is planning to inspect more than 400 connections over the next few months, the newspaper said, and it's no longer working with CCB Inc., the Westbrook contractor that installed the faulty lines. Tammy Poissonnier, a spokesperson for Summit, told the Morning Sentinel that the extra work will not impact its expansion plans. Former Wilton tannery to be redeveloped A proposal to redevelop a for- mer tannery in Wilton is moving ahead after town offi cials approved the building's sale to two broth- ers. e Morning Sentinel reported that the board of selectmen on May 5 voted to sell the 62,000-square- foot building for $1 to James Black, owner of Black Acres Firewood, and John Black, owner of Rocky Hill Landscaping. e brothers plan to invest $500,000 into a three-phase renovation of the property, which they are planning to use for storage, fi rewood processing, composting, space for new businesses as well as a manufacturing center and parts store for a Farmington business. Gardiner to end unique business loan program e Gardiner City Council has voted to end the city's revolving loan pro- gram for small businesses, with plans to use the funds for other economic development purposes. e Kennebec Journal reported that the city council's decision follows the recommendation of the city's Economic Development Committee, which suggested paying off the remaining $283,000 in federal loans that were used to help start the program. Gardiner was one of the two municipalities that were off ering the program at a local level in the state. In the program's place, the committee has recommended creating some kind of economic development program that uses the program's remaining bal- ance. e revolving loan program has supported at least 15 local businesses, including Isamax Snacks. CMHC expands partnership with Boston hospital Central Maine Healthcare in Lewiston is expanding its partner- ship with Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, but details are still being hashed out. e Sun Journal reported that the two hos- pitals have agreed to continue its partnership that began fi ve years ago and allows CMHC to receive telemedicine consultations and genetic testing for Maine can- cer patients from Massachusetts General Hospital. e two organi- zations said the expanded part- nership will allow them to work together more closely in fi elds such as cardiovascular care, emergency services and digestive health. N O T E W O R T H Y C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N Dog Not Gone, a pet safety prod- uct manufacturer and retailer in Kingfi eld, announced that its safety dog vest and other visibility products now feature the No Fly Zone Insect Defense System to repel ticks, mosquitos and other biting insects. Skowhegan Savings and Crisis & Counseling Centers have partnered to provide a new fi nancial literacy training program to individuals in Maine Electrical Alliance Save on your heating and cooling costs with a Mini-Split Heat Pump System! CALL 1-888-666-1947 TO LEARN MORE $500 rebates on qualified systems from Efficiency Maine and another $100 from our Alliance contractors! Some restrictions may apply. New ORPC subsidiary to pursue ocean energy in Ireland Ocean Renewable Power Co. is opening an offi ce in Ireland's County Donegal to capitalize on that coastal region's inter- est in the Portland-based company's renewable marine energy technology and expertise. The subsidiary, ORPC Ireland LLC, will be located at the Co-Lab Business Center at Letterkenny Institute of Technology in County Donegal, located on Ireland's northwest coast and having more mainland coastline than any other county in the country. "One of the next steps for us will be getting ORPC Solutions active in that country so we can begin a feasibility pro- cess with our partners in Donegal," said John Ferland, Ocean Renewable Power Co.'s vice president of project development who earlier this year was named president of ORPC Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary offering project devel- opment, licensing and strategic services to river and ocean energy projects throughout the world. Ferland said that process includes identifying optimum sites along the Donegal coast for deploying ocean, tidal or river power systems; determining the appropriate scale for those possibilities; and establishing stra- tegic and supply chain partnerships in that region. Nathan Johnson, ORPC's director of environmental affairs, said the decision to locate in Ireland grew out of months of discussions with Irish offi cials who visited Maine several times to learn fi rst-hand about ORPC's Cobscook Bay pilot ocean energy project in Eastport, which made history in 2012 when it became the fi rst hydrokinetic tidal energy project to deliver electricity to a utility grid in the Americas. ORPC also installed and operated its fi rst river power system in the remote Alaskan village of Igiugig last summer, successfully delivering power to shore. "It's taken lot of time and effort to get to this point," Johnson said, credit- ing Paul Williamson, director of the Maine Ocean and Wind Industry Initiative, as a key ally in the company's efforts to expand its network of partners in the international arena. "The similarities between County Donegal and Washington County are striking. The coastal and island cultures in Maine and Ireland are very, very similar. We both face the same challenges and the same opportunities." "What they saw when they came to Maine was an economic opportunity that developing renewable ocean power provided in a rural part of our state that resembles their country," Ferland added, citing the ways in which ORPC's Eastport pilot project has tapped local marine industry businesses in a supply chain that so far has pumped $25 million into Maine's economy. Ferland said ORPC's subsidiary in Donegal will be working closely with its Irish partners to identify Irish and European funding opportunities to advance hydrokinetic energy projects in Donegal. — J a m e s M c C a r t h y P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY John Ferland, vice president of project development for Ocean Renewable Power Co. and president of ORPC Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary offering project development, licensing and strategic services to river and ocean energy projects.

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