Searsport woodchip export plan: will it require a Sears Island terminal?

[Ron Huber]

According to the recent articles below, the plan  to export woodchips is moving forward.

Important to note: papermaking is cited as one of the uses for these chips, as well as burning for heat & electricity.

However,  woodchip exporters for paper use must keep their product free of coal and other contaminants.

 But Sprague handles "coke, coal, salt, iron oxide, gypsum rock, cement clinker, and silica sand" at its dock, according to the Me port authority.

The only way that Searsport would be good for handling woodchips free of such contaminants would be by sending them out from that so-called "marine transportation" area on Sears Island.

Time for some FOAAs to find out what is going on.

Two articles  detail some of the story

Portland Press Herald 11/8/16 "...Investors are preparing Eastport and Searsport to send chips to Europe to feed biomass generators there."

Biomass magazine  11/1/16

Preconstruction underway on Maine heat-treated woodchip facility

Any info anyone has or learns about this woodchip plan would be greatly appreciated

Thanks! 

Ron

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Ron Huber

Friends of Penobscot Bay

POB 1871,  Rockland Maine 04841

FB: facebook.com/penobscotbay

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tel: 207-691-7485 * cell 207-593-2744

[David Italiaander]

I have spoken to Mr. House recently and, while I consider his project commercially rather ambitious, what he is planning is easily achieved at Sprague.

His volumes of a couple of hundred thousand tons a year aren't that much, he needs inside storage, and a very high speed bulk loading system to accomplish his goal and he claims that Sprague  has agreed to build them, under contract.

He claims his contracts are for biomass for burning in Europe not papermaking. The heat treating is to meet fumigation requirements without chemicals because it is being burned and regulations in the EU prohibit burning wood containing chemical fumigants.

Sprague has no property on Sears Island. There is no "Marine Transportation" area on Sears Island, only a parcel of DOT land the state would like to use for future port development when and if Mack Point is fully developed as a port.

This will not happen. Mack Point is the 57th largest port on the east coast. It is mostly a fuel depot now with scrap metal exports and, perhaps, wood chips. Maybe used RR ties to India.

But this is not the type of growth that will max out the port any time soon.

Then there is the issue of the hundreds of millions of dollars it would take to build a port on the Island. Who pays for it and how do they make enough money to run it?

There will never be a cargo port on Sears Island.

David

P.S - GO VOTE - everyone, Go Vote.

Web: www.penbay.net  e coastwat...@gmail.com 

tel: 207-691-7485 * cell 207-593-2744

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[Ron Huber]

I admire your optimism David and hope you are right, though wood chip ports are way cheaper than container ports    Nonetheless, the FOAA responses will tell the tale.

Ron

Web: www.penbay.net  e coast...@gmail.com 

tel: 207-691-7485 * cell 207-593-2744