International Paper breaks ground on $103M upgrade in Cedar Rapids

International Paper (IP) broke ground last week on an expansion project at its 100 percent-recycled containerboard mill in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Memphis, Tennessee-based paper and packaging producer announced the upgrade in January after approval from Cedar Rapids City Council to authorize sponsorship of a business financial application to the Iowa Economic Development Authority.

The project focuses on the mill’s steam supply and the upgrade will include a new 20,000-square-foot building on the Cedar River Mill campus that will house new natural gas boilers and a water treatment plant.

The coal boilers at Alliant Energy’s Prairie Creek Generating Station currently operate the mill’s steam power, but according to The Gazette in Cedar Rapids, Alliant will no longer burn coal at Prairie Creek as part of an environmental lawsuit settlement.

IP says greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by 25 percent because of the upgrade to natural gas from coal-fired steam generation.

“We continue to work closely with the city and state on the project and appreciate their collaboration,” Amy Simpson, corporate communications and marketing for IP, told Recycling Today in January.

The Cedar River Mill consumes more than 1.1 million tons annually of recycled fiber, primarily old corrugated containers, and, according to IP, produces about 3,000 tons of paper per day.