by David Flint
The Green Renewable company in Berlin is planning a major expansion, much of it aided by an award of a half million dollars from the Capital Region Economic Development Council. Company President Sean Gallivan said he was honored that Green Renewable’s application was one of 44 considered by the Council to be a priority project. He said the award of $550,000 will help Green Renewable utilize bio-mass harvested from New York’s forests to manufacture and distribute a variety of agribusiness and renewable energy products, including fuel chips, kiln dried firewood, landscape supplies and livestock bedding.
[private]The $12 million project includes the installation of two 275 kilowatt micro-steam turbine generators, a public compressed natural gas alternative fuel filling station and product packing equipment and other infrastructure upgrades at the Berlin site that boasts 84,000 square feet of available industrial space on a 54 acre campus. The project is expected to require the addition of 35 high paying jobs including plant technicians, equipment operators, transportation logistics personnel and clerical staff.
Gallivan said that the plant has one steam turbine generator, from former W.J. Cowee days, which is inoperative at this time. When the new generators are installed, steam that escapes into the air now will be put back into the system resulting in an 85% increase in efficiency. What power is not used at the plant can be sold back to the grid for additional revenue.
Using portable tanks and a containerized system, Gallivan plans also to set up a compressed natural gas fueling station for distribution vehicles such as tractor trailer trucks. It will be available for public use as well as for the company. This is a European design that he believes will be the first such system in NY State.
The first focus, Gallivan said, will be on the new packaging facility which will require hiring most of the new staff. This should result in the injection of some needed revenue into the local economy. This automated facility will have the capability to produce packaged landscape supplies in large capacities. He expects that 16 people will be hired by April 1, possibly more depending on whether the facility operates on one shift or two.
In a separate award Green Renewable was also recently awarded ReCharge New York low cost power allocations from the New York Power Authority (NYPA). Under this program affordable, reliable electricity is provided to companies in exchange for job creation. Green Renewable, Inc. was awarded 350 kW that will be delivered from the State’s hydro-power generation facilities. “This is yet another indication that the State of New York is investing is our region’s high-tech companies and helping us to generate new jobs, cleaner energy and new, innovative products,” stated Gallivan. “We’re proud to have been selected for this award, and we look to a bright future ahead.”
The packaging facility will facilitate a major expansion that is in the works. Gallivan said that a very large “name brand” national client is interested in having Green Renewable manufacture and package large amounts of landscaping supplies including mulches of all kinds, high end soils and amenities and top soils for merchandising throughout the eastern United States. Already in place is a contract to ship a half million bags of mulches and soils, or 450 truckloads of finished product. Transportation in and out of the Berlin Green Renewable “hub,” he said, would increase tremendously. The likely result would be that substantially more than 35 jobs could be added to the workforce here. At the start the products will be purchased in bulk from the S.M. Gallivan plant in Brunswick and packaged in Berlin. Eventually manufacturing of the product will also take place in Berlin.
Gallivan said he has been pleased with his choice to locate in Berlin at the old Cowee site. Aside from what he considered a total lack of support from Town government in Brunswick for expansion of business, he believes that the infrastructure at Berlin is ideal for a bagging and packaging plant and the excellent work force is composed of bagging and packaging specialists. Therefore, he said, the residents of Berlin and the surrounding area will be the ones to reap the benefits of greater employment.
“We’re thrilled that the Regional Council has decided to fund this important project.” Gallivan said. “By securing this funding, we can move forward with facility upgrades and hiring which will ultimately help increase the quality of life for our residents. We thank the Council and Governor Andrew Cuomo for their leadership and are proud to be their partners in bringing clean energy to the Capital Region. The Governor has done a great job thinking outside of normal political ways how to spur and re-energize the New York State economy.” Gallivan added that since taking over the W.J. Cowee site just a year and two months ago the support he has received also from Congressman Chris Gibson, County Executive Kathy Jimino and Empire State Forest Productivity President Eric Carlson has been very encouraging.[/private]