ND Paper: New Recycled Pulping Operation launches at Old Town Division

This innovative new production line will produce approximately 200 metric tons per day of unbleached recycled pulp. Using patent-pending, proprietary technology, the line will consume regionally-sourced recovered paper, primarily old corrugated containers, as its primary feedstock; this incremental demand for scrap paper is anticipated to improve local recycling and ultimately reduce disposal alternatives like landfilling. In addition, while traditional pulping operations typically require considerable use of water, this new line is novel as it requires very little consumption.

At full operation, the recycled pulping operation will support approximately 20 new jobs in the state of Maine, as well as drive benefit via indirect and induced job creation. Indirect jobs are defined as those related to all of the in-Maine supply chain of vendors providing the materials and services required for pulp production, while induced jobs are those supported by employee and vendor spending. Further, ND Paper intends to spend money locally and elsewhere in the State on services including fiber sourcing, operational and maintenance supplies, and logistics.

The Old Town mill began operations in 1860 as a sawmill, moving into pulp products in 1882 as the Penobscot Chemical Fiber Company. After multiple changes of ownership through the years, the facility was idled in October 2015. ND Paper purchased the shuttered mill in October 2018 and has since invested millions of dollars into its restart and optimization. “We are thrilled to start our new recycled pulping operation at the Old Town mill,” stated Bruce Hogan, Vice President and General Manager of the Old Town Division. “This multi-million-dollar investment from ND Paper represents another vote of confidence in the State of Maine’s forest products sector, the Old Town Division, and our vision to build a sustainable company for the next 100 years.”