BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 1, 2023
A plan to transfer sustainable aviation fuel from Limestone could revive freight rail transport in central Aroostook County. Earlier this year, the Washington D.C.-based DG Fuels announced plans to build a facility at the former Loring Air Force Base. If built, the $4.4 billion facility would turn wood biomass at their Loring facility into aviation fuel for airlines along the East Coast. To transfer that fuel, the Maine Department of Transportation would need to repair 33 miles of inactive railroad stretching from Limestone to Fort Fairfield, Caribou and Presque Isle. If that happened, Loring could better position itself to become a major hub of industry again.