UPDATE – Major expansion of Ashland Sawmill announced

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New Markets investments support modernization project that will double annual production capacity and strengthen the regional economy

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ASHLAND, Maine, Sept. 16, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Irving Forest Products, Inc., a subsidiary of J.D. Irving, Limited, is undertaking a modernization project to expand its Ashland Sawmill in Nashville Plantation, Maine. The project will increase production while building on the mill’s history of contributing to the economic resiliency of the Aroostook community.

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When complete, the project will double the facility’s annual lumber production capacity from 130 million to 250 million board feet while strengthening its role as a leading manufacturer of dimensional lumber. The project is expected to create and retain the equivalent of 220 permanent, full-time jobs while supporting upstream workers, including foresters and loggers throughout the region. All jobs provide a full benefits package and pay at or above a living wage for Aroostook County.

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The project is supported by the Federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program and the Maine New Markets Capital Investment Program, which together bring a combined total of $112.9 million of tax credit allocations to the project to help bridge a funding gap by stimulating private investment. The state portion was previously announced by the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) in June.

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This funding has been allocated to seven Community Development Entities (CDEs) in the form of federal and state tax credit allocation. The CDEs include TD Community Development Corporation, Mascoma Community Development, LLC, CEI Capital Management LLC, Evernorth Rural Ventures, Inc., MHIC, CityScape Capital Group, LLC and Stonehenge Capital. Each CDE invests its allocation in the project, and those investments generate approximately $44 million in federal and state tax credits.

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The NMTC and Maine New Markets Capital Investment programs catalyze private investment in low-income communities through tax credits, enabling economic development. They are administered by Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) and FAME, respectively.

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“We deeply appreciate the support of the CDFI Fund, FAME and the CDEs for this important project,” said Jerome Pelletier of Irving Forest Products, Inc. “We are also grateful to Senator Susan Collins for her longstanding support of Maine’s forest products sector. This investment reflects the hard work of our team and our long-term commitment to the region. It will help us support good jobs and continue contributing to the Aroostook community.”

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“The Ashland expansion is an important investment in the future of Maine’s forest products industry and the communities that depend on it,” said Jim Irving, CEO of J.D. Irving, Limited. We are grateful for Senator Susan Collins, whose continued support for economic growth and modern rail service in Maine has helped create opportunities for investments like this one.”

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TD Community Development Corporation provided $10 million in a New Markets Tax Credit allocation and supported $49 million in NMTC investments, including federal and state investments and bridge equity, to help advance the Ashland Sawmill modernization project.

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“The Ashland Sawmill expansion shows how New Markets Tax Credits can bring private investment to rural communities and support businesses critical to local and regional economies,” said Will Richter, TD CDC Senior Relationship Manager. “Lumber production has long been an important part of Maine’s economic infrastructure and the broader New England supply chain, and the modernization of the Ashland Sawmill will help Irving Forest Products continue creating jobs, supporting families and strengthening the communities it serves.”

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“This investment reflects the type of catalytic, location-based manufacturing project that NMTCs were designed to support, and Mascoma Community Development is pleased to underwrite it,” said Tad Atwell, Chief Operating Officer of Mascoma Community Development. “By modernizing an existing sawmill in a severely distressed rural community, this project helps preserve high-quality manufacturing jobs, supports workforce stability, and reinforces a forestry-based economy that is critical to northern Maine.”

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“Community development finance exists for moments like this. The federal and Maine New Markets programs are designed for when a project is too important to the community to fail and too capital-intensive to succeed without the right partners,” said CCML CEO Traci Vaine. “Irving’s sawmill is a cornerstone of Aroostook County’s economy, supporting not just mill workers but the loggers, foresters, truckers, and small business owners who depend on a healthy forest products industry. We’re proud to help secure its future.”

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“The Ashland Sawmill is an important part of Maine’s forest products sector and source of quality jobs in rural Aroostook County,” said Beth Boutin, Vice President of Community Investments at Evernorth. “Evernorth is proud to provide New Markets Tax Credit financing that leverages private investment to modernize the mill, expand its production capacity, and support the workers and an industry integral to northern Maine’s rural economy.”

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“Rural communities in this part of the country lose employers more often than they gain them, and when a sawmill goes, the jobs rarely come back,” said Moddie Turay, President and CEO of MHIC. “The reason we provide our scarce state and federal New Markets Tax Credit allocations to projects like this one is the jobs themselves. These are quality jobs, in a place where they are hard to find, at a company where people have worked for generations. Expanding the Ashland sawmill means Aroostook County keeps critical employment and adds to it.”

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“At CityScape, we look for investments where New Markets financing can make a meaningful and lasting difference in a community, and the Ashland expansion is exactly that kind of project. This investment strengthens an important rural employer while helping ensure that a cornerstone of Northern Maine’s forest-products economy remains competitive for decades to come,” said Paul Hoffman, managing director of CityScape Capital Group, whose affiliate CCG Community Partners LLC provided $10.4 million of Maine State NMCIP allocation. “This project was made possible through a highly collaborative effort among J.D. Irving, FAME, TD Bank, and our fellow New Markets partners. We are proud to support a project that will expand local employment, reinforce a critical regional industry and create lasting economic benefits across Northern Maine.”

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“Stonehenge Capital is proud to partner in support of Irving’s continued investment in the Ashland Sawmill,” said L’Quentus Thomas, Senior Managing Director of Stonehenge Capital. “This modernization reflects the important role New Markets Tax Credit financing can play in bringing flexible capital to large-scale projects in rural communities. We are pleased to support a business that is deeply connected to Aroostook County’s economy and long-term resiliency.”

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Irving Forest Products rebuilt the Ashland sawmill in 2014, transforming the mill into a modern, world class facility. Since then, Irving Forest Products has continued to invest in the mill, helping to ensure that it continues to support the local economy and Aroostook community as a major employer.

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About Irving Forest Products
Irving Forest Products is one of North America’s leading producers of lumber and value-added wood products, and a division of J.D. Irving, Limited — a diversified family-owned company with operations in forestry, forest products, transportation, shipbuilding, retail, agriculture, and consumer packaged goods.

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About TD Bank U.S.
TD Bank US Holding Company and its subsidiaries, including TD Bank, N.A., are collectively known as TD Bank U.S. As the U.S. banking business of The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX and NYSE: TD), a leading North American financial services firm, TD Bank U.S. serves more than 10 million clients and has a network of approximately 1,050 locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Carolinas and Florida. We support our clients and communities with a full range of retail, small business, and commercial banking products and services. We also offer customized private banking and wealth management services, a comprehensive suite of credit card products for consumers and businesses, and automotive vehicle financing and dealer commercial services. TD Bank U.S. is one of the largest banks in the U.S. by assets and is headquartered in Mount Laurel, N.J. To learn more, visit www.td.com/us.

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About Mascoma Community Development
Mascoma Community Development (MCD) is a CDE—established in 2013 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Mascoma Bank—with the primary mission of community development utilizing the NMTC Program. MCD seeks to provide low-cost flexible funding to businesses throughout the United States and emphasizes creating and retaining quality jobs in highly distressed low-income communities nationwide. Mascoma Bank is a $2.99B mutual community bank and Benefit Corporation, serving Northern New England. Mascoma Bank is a member of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values, a Certified B Corporation®, an Equal Housing Lender, and a Member FDIC.

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About CEI Capital Management
CEI Capital Management works nationally to connect new and existing rural manufacturing companies with flexible capital through the Federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program and the Maine New Markets Capital Investment (NMCI) Program so they can build good jobs that provide living wages, comprehensive benefits and opportunities for training and advancement. Since 2004, CCML has placed over $1.2 billion of NMTC/NMCI capacity in over 100 projects. CCML is a wholly owned subsidiary of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), a Maine-based nonprofit community development financial institution.

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About Evernorth Rural Ventures
Evernorth Rural Ventures, a subsidiary of Evernorth, is a qualified rural Community Development Entity that uses its New Markets Tax Credit resources to support investment in the economic, environmental, and social well-being of northern New England communities and its regional economies. Funds are used to retain and create quality jobs and expand essential goods and services by financing key community developments in downtown and village centers and in other concerted community efforts that demonstrate positive impacts to low-income persons and communities. Learn more about Evernorth Rural Ventures at www.evernorthus.org/financing-and-investing/evernorth-rural-ventures.

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About MHIC

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MHIC is a nonprofit community development financial institution based in Boston that finances affordable housing and community development throughout New England. Through its lending, equity, and New Markets Tax Credit programs, MHIC invests in housing, community facilities, and jobs-focused industrial and commercial projects in the region’s most distressed communities. To date MHIC CDE has deployed over $1 billion in NMTC Allocation to 123 projects across 7 states.

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About CityScape Capital

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CityScape Capital Group is a boutique investment banking firm that provides direct equity investment for new markets, historic rehabilitation, C-PACE, and solar energy tax credit transactions located throughout the country. CCG helps clients capitalize on key forces within the evolving tax credit marketplace by delivering long-term value through objective analysis, sound strategy, and effective implementation. Since 1992, CCG and its principals have facilitated the placement of over $1.5 billion of tax credit equity financing involving all types of project uses ranging in size from $400,000 to over $25 million of tax credits. Also, through an affiliate, CCG provides Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing for energy efficiency, renewable energy and water conservation improvements to commercial properties. For additional information, please visit www.cityscapecapital.com.

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About Stonehenge Capital

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Founded in 1999, Stonehenge Capital Company is a nationally recognized impact investor operating at the nexus of finance and community development. Through its Direct Investing platform, Stonehenge employs federal and state-targeted economic development, and small business investment programs to provide flexible debt and equity capital to growing businesses, particularly in underserved markets. Stonehenge operates one of the largest and most successful New Markets Tax Credit practices in the country and provides traditional debt and equity financing through its SBIC and state-targeted small business investment funds. These strategies represent more than $2 billion of assets under management and enable customized capital solutions designed to fill financing gaps, support business growth, and create measurable community impact. For more information, visit stonehengecapital.com.

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