A leading clean-technology company looks to be the first tenant of a proposed bio-hub complex at the former Espanola pulp and paper mill. CHAR Technologies is focusing on setting up shop at the idled Espanola site to produce renewable natural gas and a bio-coal product from residual wood waste. The innovative Toronto company has teamed up with the BMI Group, the property’s pending new owners, to be co-developers in creating a renewable energy production facility at the mill site, now being dubbed Bioveld North. BMI is in the process of buying the property from Domtar, which closed the mill in 2023. The deal is expected to close this month. Last week, the two companies inked a “strategic partnership” agreement that involves BMI making a $2-million investment in CHAR to become a major shareholder and help fast-track CHAR’s flagship Thorold facility into commercial production later this year.
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