RICHMOND - Governor Timothy M. Kaine today announced that Lignetics, a manufacturer of high-quality wood fuel pellets, Pres-to-Logs brand firelogs and firestarter products, will invest $5.35 million to open its first Virginia wood pellet manufacturing plant in Lunenburg County. The company will create 35 new jobs. Virginia successfully competed with Kentucky for the project.
“We are proud to welcome Lignetics’ first Virginia operation to our state,” said Governor Kaine. “This environmentally friendly and energy-efficient company utilizes residual material that would otherwise end up as waste. The Commonwealth had an advantage to win this project because of our growing wood products industry cluster, as well as Lunenburg County’s trained workforce and proximity to Lignetics’ northern market.”
Headquartered in Sandpoint, Idaho, Lignetics is a privately held corporation. The company uses only the highest energy output raw material available for products, saving money on heating costs and reducing the impact on the environment. Residential homes as well as many businesses can benefit from this type of heating.
Ken Tucker, CEO of Lignetics, said, “The reasons Lunenburg County was selected include the warm welcome from a large number of local sawmill operators, allowing the availability of raw materials, the ease of transporting our finished products to our customer base and the tremendous support we received from the community.”
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Lunenburg County and the Commonwealth Regional Council to secure the project for Virginia. Governor Kaine approved $75,000 from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund to assist Lunenburg County with the project. The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission approved $120,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds to support the project. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will provide training assistance through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.
“The Board is delighted with Lignetics’ decision to locate in Lunenburg County,” said George Ingram, Chairman of the Lunenburg County Board of Supervisors. “We appreciate the efforts of Governor Kaine, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, and the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission for their invaluable assistance to Lunenburg in securing this important new industry.”