BENNETTSVILLE — Domtar Paper Co. broke ground Tuesday morning for the construction of a 45-megawatt bio-fueled steam turbine generator at its Marlboro Mill in Bennettsville.
The $40 million investment from Domtar will make the 20-year-old mill more self-reliant for its energy. It is expected to generate 95 percent of the mill’s energy needs, or 51 megawatts of electricity, and cut annual energy costs by an estimated $14 million.
“This is an investment in this facility to remain globally competitive in this industry,” Domtar’s CEO John Williams said.
In addition to saving money, officials said, the new generator shows Domtar’s commitment to the environment and the Pee Dee community.
“It is fueled by biomass and will generate clean, electrical energy using the heat and steam the mill is already creating,” Bill Edwards, vice president and general manager, said.
The steam turbine generator, expected to be installed next year, will lower the pressure of the steam already created in the recovery process so it can be converted into usable energy.
With this new generator, the mill will double the amount of biomass it is using. This increase in need will help create more jobs for biomass suppliers, Edwards said.
“This is the right project at the right time. In this industry, many mills are being shut down and only the strong will survive. This project will position the Marlboro mill to be the one that survives,” he said.
The mill itself, which became a part of Domtar in 2007, employs 325 people, 127 of whom have been there since it opened in 1990. It has an annual paper production capacity of about 391,000 tons, which is enough to to wrap the earth at the equator 11 times with a paper sheet 27 feet wide.
The mill also is one of the largest industrial taxpayers in Marlboro County.
“Domtar Corp. and its paper mill here have been strong community supporters from the outset,” Marlboro County Economic Development Partnership Executive Director Butch Mills Jr. said in a press release about the generator from the S.C. Department of Commerce. “We look at this announcement as further evidence of the successful efforts of the Marlboro community and the Domtar Corp. working jointly towards the goal of longevity and prosperity for all.”
Domtar Corp. is the largest integrated manufacturer and marketer of uncoated freesheet paper in North America and the second largest in the world based on production capacity, and is also a manufacturer of papergrade, fluff and specialty pulp, according to the release. The company designs, manufactures, markets and distributes a wide range of business, commercial printing and publishing as well as converting and specialty papers.
Domtar owns and operates Domtar Distribution Group, a network of strategically located paper distribution facilities. Domtar also produces lumber and other specialty and industrial wood products. The company employs nearly 10,500 people in all.
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Domtar, www.domtar.com
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