This fall, CLM Corporation is hoping to begin one of the largest construction projects in Superior history - a $36 million expansion to CLM's Lime Plant - pending final regulatory approval, the company said in a morning nnews release.
"CLM Corporation has been proud to provide jobs and tax base for Superior since 1947, and we're hoping to build on that tradition with a $36 million expansion," Bruce Abbett, board chairman of Duluth's Cutler-Magner Co., the parent organization of CLM Corporation, said in a prepared statement. "Cutler-Magner has been a mainstay on the Duluth-Superior Harbor for more than 125 years, and we're committed to helping this community succeed for many years to come."
According to the company's announcement, CLM produces lime products that are used in paper production, power plant pollution control, municipal and industrial water and sewage treatment, industrial and residential water treatment, road stabilization, steel production and ore processing. Iron Range taconite companies make value-added pellets that contain products produced at the CLM facility.
CLM's storage capacity in Superior allows it to stockpile 500,000 short tons of limestone over 10 acres. Specialized equipment, including a massive bridge crane, transports the limestone to conveyors feeding four rotary kilns.
Cutler-Magner President & CEO James Korthals said the $36 million investment would be in construction of a fifth kiln that would process calcium oxide, commonly known as quicklime, and high calcium hydrated lime, which is used in water, waste water purification, environmental, industrial and construction applications.
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"North American demand for our products is high with no signs of letting up, and that's why we're planning to invest in this fifth kiln," said Korthals.
Korthals said if approved, construction will begin this fall, with completion expected by December 2007. He said at least five new employees would be hired to accommodate the new kiln, bringing CLM Corporation's total employment to 47.
"Cutler-Magner and CLM have always been dedicated to solid environmental stewardship," added Korthals, "and this new kiln is one more example of our going the extra mile to be both fiscally and environmentally responsible."
