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QUINNESEC -- The wave of consumers going paperless hasn't been easy for those in the business of creating paper. Several paper mills have been closed or threatened for closure around the country.

But, one local mill is working around that challenge by upgrading their systems in a way they say will allow them to make the cut for years to come.

It's an upgrade Verso's Quinnesec Mill says has given a new heartbeat to their systems. The completion of a $45 million renewable energy project at the pulp and paper mill that will supply 95 percent of their operation's energy consumption.

"That makes us self-sufficient, and the companies and mills dropping out of the competition, they're not fully integrated like we are today," says Mill Manager Adam St. John.

The fuel is biomass, a resource that's abundant here in Upper Michigan. That's tree tops, limbs and bark they wouldn't otherwise use, pumped into a boiler which sends steam to a turbine to supply 28 mega watts of energy to the mill. That's equalivent to the amount of fuel used by 18,000 homes each year.

They say the expanded harvesting of the biomass meets forest sustainability standards and will create more jobs for the logging community, as more trucks are needed to bring the biomass to the mill.

"There could be upwards of 50 jobs created in the woods, in the supply line that brings us the raw materials for this project," says Communications Manager Mark F. Pontti.

The new upgrade won't create any new jobs at the mill, but they say it will create stability for their current 450 employees.

"If we're efficient, a low cost producer, then you can compete in this worldwide market," Pontti says. "We think we'll be here for a long time, providing these jobs."