OLD TOWN — A bankruptcy court judge has approved the $10.5 million sale of a shuttered paper mill in Old Town to a Wisconsin company that wants to reopen it.

Expera Specialty Solutions of Kaukauna, Wisconsin, said it plans to reopen the Old Town Fuel & Fiber mill and bring back about 200 workers.

The mill furloughed about 200 workers when it suspended operations in August.

The previous owner, Patriarch Partners, a New York-based investment firm, cited high operating costs and foreign competition.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Louis Kornreich approved the transaction Friday in Bangor. The judge’s order said the deal was “in the best interests of the debtor’s estate, its creditors, and other parties.”

Another sale of a shuttered Maine paper mill is pending. The sale of the Great Northern Paper mill in East Millinocket is in the process of closing and should be completed soon, according to the attorney for the bankruptcy trustee overseeing the liquidation of the mill’s assets. The sale between Great Northern Paper Maine Holdings and Hackman Capital Acquisition, a subsidiary of a Los Angeles-based company that specializes in the purchase and sale of industrial properties and equipment, is in the process of acquiring signatures.

Hackman has not revealed its plans for the mill. The sale price of $5.4 million will be used to settle debts with creditors. Secured creditors are owed $42 million and unsecured creditors are owed $22.6 million.


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