Madison mill signs natural gas pipeline deal
Courtesy Nancy Marshall Communications
Mike Minkos, left, president of Summit Natural Gas of Maine, shakes hands with Russ Drechsel, CEO of UPM Madison.
The UPM Madison paper mill, which has received natural gas by truck since last November, has signed a deal to tap into Summit Natural Gas of Maine's Kennebec Valley pipeline, now under construction, this fall.
The companies announced the deal Wednesday. UPM Madison CEO Russ Drechsel told the Bangor Daily News the deal would help the 240-person operation stay competitive internationally by lowering its energy costs.
In October, U.S. trade officials announced they had begun an investigation into subsidies that a Nova Scotia mill received from the Canadian government to reopen. That mill produces the same type of supercalendared paper as the Madison mill and industry and political officials in Maine have argued those subsidies put the Madison mill at an unfair disadvantage and conflict with World Trade Organization agreements.
Drechsel declined to tell the paper how much the mill stands to save by switching to natural gas provided through the pipeline and the companies did not specify the duration of the natural gas agreement.
For Summit, the deal with the Madison mill comes as it vies against Maine Natural Gas, which is also building natural gas infrastructure in the area, for customers throughout the Kennebec Valley.
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