Leaders of Green Bay Packaging report the organization is presently completely run by natural gas after turning off the last coal-fired boiler on Sunday night.
They consider it a significant achievement in the project to manufacture a new paper mill.
Action 2 News first detailed the organization’s plans to replace its 71-year-old mill with a new state-of-the-art facility in June 2018.
This is the first new paper mill built in the State of Wisconsin in over 30 years.
The project has made considerable progress since Green Bay Packaging broke ground on the new mill in August 2018.
“At that time, we were excited to talk about what will be the most-environmentally friendly mill in the United States,” said Bryan Hollenbach, executive vice president of Green Bay Packaging.
In a press conference on Monday morning, project leaders declared that it is becoming a greater extent a reality as coal-powered operations come to an end.
“That is a major milestone, and it happened on the exact date that we planned it,” said Hollenbach.
“It’s historic, and I think quite frankly overtime when this is built there will be companies throughout the United States, if not globally, that will be coming here to see how do they build and make paper in an environmentally sound way,” said Troy Streckenbach, Brown County Executive.
Dispensing with coal operations is only one of many significant achievements still ahead on the paper mill project; nonetheless, Hollenbach says he is sure they will meet their time constraint. “We’ll be firing up the new paper machine in the primary quarter of 2021.”
He lists various different commitments the organization made in 2018 that is on track to not exclusively be met yet surpassed.
Hollenbach expects the total investment of this project to go past $500 million with in excess of 200 Wisconsin laborers hired to work in the mill full-time.
Precisely how much the organization surpasses those commitments is still to be seen.
With construction in full force, Hollenbach appraises more than 600 subcontractors are nearby at any one time. He expects that number will ascend to 1,200 subcontractors before the project is finished.
“We’re known in Northeast Wisconsin, in Green Bay, for our work ethic, blue-collar background, and the kinds of skilled tradespeople we have in this region,” said City of Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich. “This would not be possible without all of the people involved with making that happen.”
In spite of “tough weather” and a few challenges, Hollenbach says the project is still on schedule.
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