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Plans are underway for a bio-fuel plant to open in Millinocket

In this Jan. 13, 2017, file photo, Katahdin is seen behind pipes running through the former Great Northern Paper mill in Millinocket.
Ashley L. Conti
/
BDN file
In this Jan. 13, 2017, file photo, Katahdin is seen behind pipes running through the former Great Northern Paper mill in Millinocket.

A national biofuels company says it plans to site a new plant at the former Great Northern Paper mill in Millinocket.

Castlerock Biofuels will convert logging residue from local forestry operations to into 20 million gallons of bio-oil per year, says company CEO John Murphy.

"There is kind of this byproduct that's left over, which is tops, limbs and branches. There's no other real commercial use for it, and so when it gets left behind, it's a forest fire hazard. It actually impedes forest growth, and it emits biogenic carbon as it rots," he says.

Murphy says bio-crude from wood produces much lower emissions than traditional heating oil. He says the plant processing the wood will be powered by electricity from the nearby hydropower dam in Brookfield.

The facility is expected to be operational by 2027. And according to Our Katahdin, a community development nonprofit, the new project should create 150 construction jobs, and once up and running, 80 full-time jobs in the area.