Verso Paper Awarded Nearly $10 Million for Energy Efficiency Project

November 03 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Mike Michaud praised the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) announcement that Verso Paper Corporation will receive a $9,356,177 Recovery Act grant for the deployment of waste energy recovery technologies. The project will implement a portfolio of 12 waste energy recovery sub-projects at Verso paper mills located in Jay, Maine; Bucksport, Maine; and Sartell, Minnesota. The sub-projects were chosen for their energy savings potential and potential for immediate implementation. The bundled project has an overall efficiency of 33%, and will save an estimated 1.28 trillion Btu annually.

“Many Maine companies have embraced energy efficiency technologies and practices because it is good for business,” said Michaud. “The projects announced today, including Verso’s, will not only improve energy efficiencies, but also lead to longer term savings for area businesses. Nationally, this is a competitive issue for the United States. Other countries are moving fast to adopt these practices and our country can’t afford to be behind the curve.”

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Nationally, the DOE is awarding more than $155 million in funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for industrial energy efficiency projects across the country. According to the DOE, projects announced today will promote the use of combined heat and power, district energy systems, waste energy recovery systems, and energy efficiency initiatives in hospitals, utilities, and industrial sites. Combined Heat and Power and District Energy Systems generate both the heat and power needed for industrial processes on-site, instead of using electricity from the grid, and can be nearly twice as efficient as conventional heat and power production. The Recovery Act awards announced today will be leveraged with $634 million in private industry cost share for a total project value of up to $785 million. These industrial efficiency projects will result in almost 14 trillion Btu in estimated energy savings, which is equivalent to over 112 million gallons of gasoline per year.

According to the DOE, the projects announced today are selections for financial award. The final details for each project award are subject to final contract negotiations between DOE and the grantee.

Source: Congressman Mike Michaud