Eagle Creek Renewable Energy Acquires Hydro Facilities from Madison Paper

Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, Morristown, N.J., USA, has completed the acquisition of approximately 30 MW of hydroelectric facilities from Madison Paper Industries, a partnership of UPM and Northern SC Paper Corp., a subsidiary of The New York Times Co., New York, N.Y.

Eagle Creek has acquired the 9-MW Anson and 19-MW Abenaki facilities located on the Kennebec River in Madison, Anson, and Starks, Maine.  The two facilities were part of the Madison Paper mill complex and formerly provided power to the mill until it closed in May 2016. As independent facilities owned by Eagle Creek, they will now provide approximately 150 million kilowatt-hours per year of clean, renewable energy to the New England power grid.

Eagle Creek has also acquired a minority interest in the 4-MW Brassua facility near the village of Rockwood, Maine, and a majority interest in the Kennebec Water Power Co., which regulates releases from upstream storage reservoirs on the Kennebec River.

Eagle Creek CEO Bud Cherry said that "we are very pleased to add these substantial facilities to our portfolio. Together with our other recent acquisitions in Maine, Anson and Abenaki provide us with the scale to establish a more focused, regional operation, and that will allow us to give even greater attention to continuing the safe, reliable operation of these facilities."

Eagle Creek was founded in 2010 to acquire, enhance, and operate small to medium hydroelectric power facilities. Its portfolio comprises approximately 220 MW of generation from 64 facilities in 13 states. These facilities annually produce in excess of 920 million kilowatt-hours of safe, clean, renewable energy for customers across the U.S., while providing recreational opportunities and protecting historical resources and the environment. Eagle Creek also has ownership interests equivalent to approximately 10 MW in 13 other hydroelectric facilities and two solar facilities in New England.

Eagle Creek is a privately owned entity with its largest investors being Power Energy Eagle Creek (PEEC) and Hudson Clean Energy Partners. PEEC is a joint venture between a wholly owned subsidiary of Power Corporation of Canada and Claridge Inc. More information about Eagle Creek is available online.

Madison Paper Industries is a partnership of UPM and Northern SC Paper Corp., a subsidiary of The New York Times Co.

UPM Paper ENA (Europe and North America) is a producer of graphic papers, offering an extensive product range for advertising and publishing as well as home and office uses. The high performing papers and service concepts of UPM add value to customer businesses, while actively fulfilling demanding environmental and social responsibility criteria. With headquarters in Germany, UPM Paper ENA employs approximately 8,000 people. More about UPM Paper ENA is available online.

Through the renewing of the bio and forest industries, UPM is building a sustainable future across six business areas: UPM Biorefining, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Paper ENA, and UPM Plywood. UPM’s products are made of renewable raw materials and are recyclable. The group employs around 19,300 people and its annual sales are approximately EUR 10 billion. More information about UPM is available online.