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A new demonstration project pellet mill is scheduled to be built in Ketchikan on Gravina Island in mid-to late 2023 by the region’s economic development organization, Southeast Conference.
The organization, which now holds $1.8 million in grant funding from various sources, is currently in the planning process toward constructing that mill.
Southeast Conference will own and operate the mill; however, the organization may partner with a private organization in the future to help run the mill, according to Southeast Conference Executive Director Robert Venables.
Pellets mostly will be made out of forest waste product, but Southeast Conference will be “experimenting” with other biomass products such as cardboard, according to Venables.
Various entities such as the Ketchikan International Airport use pellets for heating, while other places, such as local hardware stores, sell them. The idea behind opening a mill in Ketchikan is that pellets will not have to be imported into Ketchikan, but can be produced locally, according to Venables.
The Ketchikan Gateway Borough was the ideal location for the demonstration project pellet mill, according to Venables. Ketchikan had lower energy costs, ... proximity to resources, and "the opportunities to perhaps take a look at some other feed stock streams like pallets and cardboard," Venables said.
"This is a demonstration project that we hope will be the first of many in the state that can be community sized to local demand needs," Venables said, "and resources to match the two together and produce a product that doesn't have to be shipped long distances in order to be utilized."
"You can't do a demonstration project in a community that is off the beaten path, has high cost of energy, and doesn't have that demand for the product yet (which is another reason why Ketchikan was an ideal location)," Venables also said.
The lease agreement for the 93,240-square-foot piece of land where the mill would go was unanimously approved by the Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly members in attendance on Sept. 6.
Assembly member Austin Otos, who voted for the lease, told the Daily News that, "It would be nice to get some value added product — made here regionally — that we can use to heat."
According to Venables, the mill will be "tailored" to what we see as Ketchikan's demand."
Venables said that the mill "probably has five or six jobs attached to it."
Currently, Southeast Conference officials are working on updating cost figures, and in discussion with the manufacturer vendor about equipment. They are hoping to kick off the project next spring or summer, according to Venables.