The Finance Authority of Maine approved financing for two projects last week: a new veterans' residential care facility in Augusta, and a library renovation in Millinocket.
GO Lab had spent three years putting together a plan to produce wood fiber insulation at the former Madison paper mill. All that was left was to finalize financing for the $65 million startup cost.
When the pandemic hit, it busted the deal. “It completely changed our dynamic for the rollout,” says Matt O’Malia, who founded the company with Josh Henry.
Changed it in a way that was transformational. There are new investors, a marketing chief who’s putting the product on the national radar and a planned $100 million rollout.
“We have a much better project now than we had before,” O’Malia says. “It’s a bigger vehicle, it’s a lot more expensive, but it’s a better fit.”