The facility that invented coated printing papers for magazines has been certified a renewable energy resource generating facility

SMART Papers has been certified a renewable energy resource generating facility by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. The company that invented and was one of the first to produce coated printing papers for magazines operates a 37.8 megawatt co-generation power plant, and is expected to reduce its coal consumption by 50 percent next year. The Cincinnati based facility in enabling Ohio and the U.S. Midwest electricity grid to increase its clean energy resources by next year, as stated by law, and this certification helps to accelerate this process.

SMART Papers has already reduced its energy consumption since inception in 1893, but with the additional certification there is additional room for growth. Finalizing renewable energy production after state and federal agency permits are cleared, the company will replace its coal with cellulosic fuel pellets. Those pellets are created from non-recyclable paper and biomass materials.

SMART Papers already produced all of its own electricity, and sells the rest for use to the U.S. Power Transmission Grid, distributed through Ohio and central US via Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator. The project is just one of many in the State of Ohio, as law requires 25 percent of electricity sold by the state must be generated from alternative energy sources by 2025.

"The state utility commission's ruling enables us to help Ohio meet its requirement for renewable energy supply," said Dan Maheu, president of SMART Papers. "This is a powerful example of how manufacturers can cost-efficiently reduce dependence on fossil fuels—and put excess renewable energy on the U.S. electricity grid."
The Hamilton based facility created paper and packages papers up to 100 percent post-consumer waste content.