Minnesota Agencies React to Huber's Change of Mind

Huber Engineered Woods LLC (HEW) Thursday announced that the company will not be locating its oriented strand board (OSB) manufacturing facility in Cohasset. In June 2021, the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation Board approved $15 million in funding for the construction of the new facility, which was projected to bring 150 new jobs to the region. In addition, the project was expected to contribute to the business growth of Minnesota's logging and trucking industries. The Cohasset project involved constructing a new state-of-the-art facility located on more than 400 acres in southwest Itasca County.

Commissioner of Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation Ida Rukavina said, "Our agency invested extensive time, energy and resources to bring this project to fruition. We are extremely disappointed that these high-paying, quality jobs will not be coming to our region. Our agency was eagerly looking forward to welcoming Huber to our manufacturing economy, and the positive impacts the new facility could have had on the region's timber and construction trades industries."

"Huber Engineered Wood's decision to forgo the proposed facility in Cohasset is a huge disappointment. The MPCA worked closely with Huber and prioritized their project by committing significant staff resources to develop and implement the most efficient and thorough permitting timeline, including partnering with local leaders to try to resolve outstanding questions from the federal government," said Commissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Katrina Kessler. "The MPCA stands ready to work with the City of Cohasset, Itasca County, IRRRB, and DEED to find new economic opportunities to benefit that community and is committed to efficient and transparent permitting processes to protect the environment and help create good jobs for northern Minnesota."

"The proposed Huber Engineered Woods facility in Cohasset was an important economic development opportunity – not just for Itasca County and northern Minnesota but for our entire state," said Commissioner of Employment and Economic Development Steve Grove. "We worked tirelessly across state agencies to coordinate permitting and regulatory decisions and to ensure it was a transparent process. Huber's departure is a loss for the region, and a loss for the state."