A Central Maine Power Co. executive disputes a December report that the company’s $200 million smart meter system crashed during the October 2017 wind storm.

Speaking Tuesday before a state legislative committee about the October storm, Eric Stinneford, CMP’s vice president, controller and treasurer, said the comment by a company spokesman that the system had flatlined was “unfortunate and uninformed.”…

So is this reporter suggesting the smartest policy is to catch unwitting citizens off guard? How about doing that in the Berkshires or on Cape Cod? 

"Even so, the Baker administration believed that out of 46 bids, Northern Pass had the best chance to deliver the most electricity and at the earliest date. Yes, the opposition was loud, but…

All sources of generation that comply with Rhode Island’s RES will be eligible, including solar, biomass, small hydro and land-based and offshore wind.

However, the competitive nature of the solicitation may determine which projects are selected, and the current higher price of offshore wind in the United States may rule out this resource unless a carve-out or other means of differentiating this resource is provided........................

But New England as a whole also…

Ocean City’s town officials are turning up the heat on two offshore wind projects they say will spoil beach views and hurt the resort’s tourism industry.

The Town Council voted unanimously Monday night to oppose the construction of wind turbines that would be visible anywhere along the town’s 10 miles of coastline.

“This is a big project that will be there for many, many years, and we only get one chance to make it right,” Mayor Rick Meehan said.…

Ward, who has denied that he provided any insider information to anyone, wasn’t on the conference calls. But other people who were – notably John Richardson, a former legislative leader and economic development commissioner who has been working with a ConEd partner – discussed information that they said Ward provided. Other people on the calls were investors, ConEd representatives and business partners........

Richardson has declined to comment on the matter, citing a…

AUBURNDALE, Mass. — Speakers at the Northeast Energy and Commerce Association Renewable Energy Conference on Feb. 1 discussed the merits and viability of different methods to achieve New England’s aggressive emission reduction goals.

These topics included carbon pricing, the Northern Pass transmission project and offshore wind energy. Utility and energy service representatives were joined by state and federal officials..............

Gardner said the first question of any state…

Another incredibly beautiful area of Maine in the target sights with 600' tall turbines.

Twitchell Pond (above)…

I guess we'll see how this plays out. It sure would be nice to see similarly lengthy media attention accorded to the improper influence observed with the wind industry, the consequences of which are of a far greater magnitude to much of Maine and virtually all Maine ratepayers.

One of the actors mentioned in this article is John Richardson, working with NY's Con Ed. As a side note, it can be pointed out that John Richardson, also appears to be a member of…

During public hearings, the SEC received more than 3,000 statements from individuals. Nearly 95 percent of this input was opposed to the project, leaving no question where the people of the municipalities along the Northern Pass route stand.

In addition, of the 31 towns located along the project’s route, 29 were opposed to the project. Most towns had rejected the Northern Pass project via warrant articles passed at town meeting, petitions, letters and having administrators and/or…

FEBRUARY 1, 2018

We’ve been hearing a lot lately about the economics of wind energy. In a recent earnings call, James Robo, CEO of NextEra Energy, predicted that within a decade the cost of wind generation would be more competitive “without incentives” than conventional sources like coal and natural gas. NextEra is one of the…

A utility says it is ‘‘shocked and outraged’’ by state regulators’ rejection of a hydropower project that would have constructed nearly 200 miles of transmission lines across New Hampshire.…

PPH: No amount of study is going to convince the governor to reverse his strident opposition to wind generation, so why bother?

Last week Gov. LePage created a special commission to study wind power development in Maine and issue a report.................................…

"Grant-driven environmental groups have become the pawns of wealthy foundations bent on "progressive" social change. Foundation bosses design "environmental justice" projects and find-or create-groups to do their bidding......Undue Influence exposes the biggest deliberate program of social and economic displacement in American history. A handful of wealthy people are redesigning American politics to fulfill their vision of an "environmental society" that gives them all the power and…

The Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions (AWED) is an informal coalition of individuals and organizations interested in improving national, state, and local energy and environmental policies.

Some of the more important articles in this issue are:

Maine Governor establishes a state Wind Advisory Committee and a wind…

The bill would also significantly expand – from eight miles to 40 miles – the area around turbines that could be subject to visual impact studies. That could raise the regulatory hurdle for projects that are still within expedited permitting areas.…

Look at the bids that came in for the various wind projects responding to the Mass RFP. Many were so heavily redacted that they provided almost no information as to where great swaths of Maine would be grossly transformed. Many pages were 100% black. Look at the Maine media's refusal to serve their readership with the information that former governor Baldacci, the creator of Maine's sweeping wind law, joined the board of the nation's second largest wind company - Avangrid (CMP). Or that he…

Declared gubernatorial candidate Adam Cote discusses his energy "policy" in the Portland Press Herald this morning. In his piece he talks about how the new wind study commission "threatens to hurt a lot of good people across our state and cost us thousands of good-paying jobs".

We couldn't disagree more Mr. Cote. 

Regardless of whether one supports Governor LePage or not, he's absolutely on the right side of this issue and Mr.…

Gov. Paul LePage imposed a moratorium on new wind energy permits in much of Maine on Wednesday while establishing a commission that will meet behind closed door to study the economic impacts of wind turbines on the state’s tourism industry......The governor is also expected to unveil legislation in the coming days aimed at changing Maine’s controversial expedited permitting system for wind energy projects throughout rural Maine.…

Hopefully other areas will come under this beginning with Katahdin.

An Order Establishing the Maine Wind Energy Advisory Commission

January 24, 2018

2018-002

WHEREAS, Tourism is a major industry in the State of Maine, attracting over 35 million visitors in 2016 who spent nearly $6 billion; and

WHEREAS, the scenic vistas and pristine waters of Western Maine, our coast and coastal islands, and our significant avian migratory pathways (the…