WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, and U.S. Representatives Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden, today are announcing the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) decision to award $22 million in funding for Maine’s Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub, led by the Maine Technology Institute. The grant will support the advancement of two projects that aim to further position Maine as a global leader in forest-based biomaterial production and manufacturing.

“Maine is a leader in the forest products industry — both here at home and around the globe,” said the Delegation. “An investment in our forestry sector is a direct investment into Maine’s economy and future. This $22 million award for the Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub will be critical in ensuring we have the tools to strengthen the workforce, spur innovation and further build upon the industry’s success.”

The grant will support implementation of two projects that include:

• Connecting forest bioproducts technological innovations with the commercialization resources and partnerships necessary to successfully bring that intellectual property to market at a globally competitive scale and serving as the backbone organization for the consortium, coordinating governance, strategy, evaluation, and community engagement; and 
• Strengthening a pipeline of innovations (functionalized feedstocks, applications, and manufacturing technologies), de-risking these innovations with technical assistance, and leveraging new commercialization, advanced manufacturing, and workforce resources of the Tech Hub to accelerate the most promising innovations.

Last March, the Delegation wrote a letter to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development expressing their support for Maine’s application for a Tech Hubs Implementation grant. In addition to the Delegation letter, Senator Collins sent a follow-up letter advocating for this program to receive Tech Hubs grant funding. Previously, the Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub received a $500,000 Consortium Accelerator Award to continue implementing their strategies, including the pursuit of additional capital, and was among six Tech Hubs across the country to receive awards from additional funding through the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub is among 31 Tech Hubs designated in October 2023 designated by the Department of Commerce to scale up the production of critical technologies, create jobs in innovative industries, strengthen U.S. economic competitiveness and national security, and accelerate the growth of industries of the future in regions across the United States.

In 2016, Senators Collins and King called on the U.S. Department of Commerce to establish the Economic Development Assessment Team (EDAT), that would work across agencies and sectors to create strategies for job growth and economic development in Maine’s rural communities. The creation of the EDAT and its subsequent studies and research led to the EDA and the U.S. Forest Service providing funding for the Forest Opportunity Roadmap Maine (FOR/ME) Initiative. The FOR/ME Initiative is a participant-led initiative that is helping to diversify the state’s wood products businesses, attract investments, support research and development, and develop greater economic prosperity for rural communities impacted by mill closures.

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