MADISON — Hydro power assets at the shuttered Madison Paper Industries have been sold to a New Jersey hydroelectric power producer, marking the final step in the sale of the paper mill and opening the door for future plans at the site.

Madison Paper Industries, a former partnership of UPM and Northern SC Paper Corp., a subsidiary of The New York Times Company, signed an agreement to sell its hydropower facilities to Eagle Creek Renewable Energy LLC, a hydroelectric power producer based in Morristown, New Jersey, the company said Tuesday in an emailed statement.

The paper mill, which closed in May and put about 215 people out of work, was sold in December to a buyer with plans to put the property back into use as an industrial site. Future uses of the mill site have been on hold pending the sale of the hydroelectric assets. The acquisition of the mill site — which closed for an undisclosed price — included the real estate of the main paper mill site as well as all mill equipment.

Tuesday’s announced transaction is still subject to third party approvals. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

“Eagle Creek is a well-known and experienced operator of hydroelectric power facilities in North America,” Ruud van den Berg, senior vice president for magazines, merchants and office at UPM Paper in Helsinki, Finland, said in an emailed statement. “The company focuses on CO2-friendly power production and has a long-term focused business strategy in this sector. As an integral part of an energy company the hydro power facilities can be operated and developed in an optimal way.”

The mill property was sold to a “joint venture” of New Mill Capital Holdings, of New York; Perry Videx, of Hainesport, New Jersey; and Infinity Asset Solutions, of Toronto. Gregory Schain, principal of New Mill Capital Holdings, has visited Madison since the sale and has high hopes for future use at the site.

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“Eagle Creek is very pleased to broaden our footprint in central Maine,” Bud Cherry, CEO of Eagle Creek Renewable Energy said in the emailed statement. “The Madison Paper Industries hydroelectric portfolio represents an excellent opportunity to build out our operations in the region through the acquisition of a well-maintained, high quality set of hydro facilities.”

The mill produced supercalendered paper used for magazine publishing and has been in Madison since 1978. It was producing about 195,000 tons of paper annually at the time the closure was announced

This story will be updated

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow


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