Woodland Pulp Breaks Ground for New Tissue Operations in Maine

Maine Governor Paul LePage recently participated in a groundbreaking ceremony at Woodland Pulp’s new tissue production operations in Baileyville, Maine, USA, to be known as the St. Croix Tissue mill. The affiliated business unit, which represents a $120 million investment, will operate two tissue machines, employing an additional 80 workers. In the photo, Gov. LePage (third from left) joins company officials at the groundbreaking ceremony.

"This is a pleasant day," LePage said in an article by the Bangor Daily News, addressing a gathering of about 50 local, state and company officials in a parking lot outside of the pulp mill. He called it "an enormously great day for Washington County," one of Maine’s poorest counties.

A.K. Agarwal, CEO of International Grand Investment Corp., the parent company of Woodland Pulp, said later that the company is looking into the feasibility of purchasing other mills in Maine. "We may be looking into it," he said. However, Agarwal emphasized the exploratory nature of the discussions and said that IGIC has made no commitments. He characterized the talks as "preliminary discussions."

LePage alluded directly to the setbacks Maine’s pulp and paper industry has experienced as recently as the announcement a week ago that the Verso paper mill in Bucksport will close. The industry has been "going south," he said, adding, however, that there are two things that Maine’s pulp and paper industry does have going for it-- its workforce and experience. He also acknowledged that while other mills may face markets that are in decline for some paper products, demand for tissue paper will continue to increase with population growth.

LePage praised Woodland Pulp for its foresight in investing in natural gas infrastructure several years ago. "They knew that energy was a central part of the operation," he said. Woodland invested $16 million in a natural gas pipeline to connect to the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline, the newspaper article reported.

LePage said he is actively pursuing talks with potential buyers of the Verso mill in Bucksport, which is scheduled to close December 1. "We’re in meetings every day," he said, talking to several prospects. "We are very, very hopeful. The state is very willing to talk turkey," he added.

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