The city of Ashland, Kentucky, has a simple yet powerful pitch to those perusing its city website: Create with us. Part of a “metro triangle” that includes Ironton, Ohio, and Huntington, West Virginia, Ashland is a 17-square-mile town that 21,000 residents are proud to call home.

Among the town’s talented entrepreneurs and employers are the operators of Mega Highwall Mining, a company that provides ADDCAR and Superior/Cat highwall mining systems to mining operations throughout the U.S.

The company’s reputation in the industry is multifaceted; it’s known for recruiting the best operators from around the industry and for its sterling dedication to safety.

But the company isn’t composed of operators alone; inventors occupy the payroll, too. Mega operates a fabrication shop, where custom parts are crafted and equipment is modified, offering its miners a distinct advantage when hard at work underground.

Such considerable investment in people and processes comes at a cost. Luckily, Mega Highwall’s rural location qualified the company for competitively priced, government-guaranteed funding through the USDA’s Rural Development Program. Its $25 million Business & Industry Loan will be used to refinance existing debt, purchase new equipment, and provide working capital.

North Avenue Capital was proud to partner with Mega Highwall and the USDA to secure the capital required to keep one of Ashland’s star enterprises at the industry’s cutting edge.