GREENVILLE – The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Greenville Steam Co. $742,500 to fund a composite biomass project titled Condensing Heat Recovery and Emissions Reduction Test Program.

“This funding from the Department of Energy will contribute immensely to the Greenville Steam Company’s ongoing biomass energy efforts,” U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe wrote in a prepared statement Tuesday.

“It is essential that Maine continue to develop and utilize new energy technologies in order to manage waste amounts and keep costs reasonable for the people of Maine,” they wrote.

The Greenville Steam Co. is a wood-burning plant that produces electricity using only waste wood. In operation since 1985, the company provides power to Central Maine Power Co.

The Department of Energy’s overarching mission is to advance the national, economic and energy security of the United States; to promote scientific and technological innovation in support of that mission; and to ensure the environmental cleanup of the national nuclear weapons complex.