Maine PUC awards new round of clean-energy projects

EXCERPTS:

.......Six new solar projects and one existing wind farm were selected Tuesday by the Maine Public Utilities Commission as the best clean-energy choices to supply power for Central Maine Power and Versant Power customers.

.......The one existing project winner, for 50 percent of its 132-megawatt output, was Helix Maine Wind Development LLC. The wind farm is in the Boundary Mountains of Franklin County. (Kibby Mountain)

.......Interest groups that support clean energy reacted favorably following the decision.

A spokesman for the Maine Renewable Energy Association, a trade group representing clean energy generators in the state, said the outcome will be a good deal for electric customers.

“Today’s unanimous approval by the Maine PUC demonstrates (that) a highly competitive bidding process will help to bring low-cost, high-value Maine-made solar and wind for the benefit of all Maine ratepayers,” said Jeremy Payne, the association’s executive director.

.......The Natural Resources Council of Maine said the project awards create a future in which Maine residents and businesses are powered by clean energy from local resources.

Advertisement

“The PUC’s approval of seven very competitive solar and wind energy projects is further proof that Maine’s vital transition to 100 percent clean energy is accelerating and beginning to deliver vast economic, environmental and public health benefits,” said David Costello, the group’s climate and clean-energy director.

Read the full article here:

https://www.pressherald.com/2021/06/29/puc-awards-new-round-of-main...

 

RELATED:

Projects Will NOT Help Achieve Maine's Renewable Portfolio Standard Goals.

https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/projects-will-not-help...

 

CMP customers may see double-digit increases in bills in August

Central Maine Power customers may see their bills increase by double-digits in August, thanks to a sharp rise in federally mandated regional transmission rates that will affect most electric utility companies in New England.

The annual adjustment — which CMP projects will result in a 9 percent increase overall across the region — will be used to finance new high-voltage transmission lines and maintain existing lines, Maine Public reported.

The tariff will hit CMP harder than most, with rates increasing by $70 million, or about 25 percent.

Read the full article at:

https://bangordailynews.com/2021/06/29/business/central-maine-power...

Views: 184

Comment

You need to be a member of Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine to add comments!

Join Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine

Comment by Robert Feller on July 6, 2021 at 8:45am

Please look at this website, we need to do the same thing.

https://stopthesethings.com/

Comment by Willem Post on July 6, 2021 at 8:42am

“Sen. Chris Bray, D-Addison, who chairs the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy, said he wants to make sure homeowners have access to weatherization efforts, modifying buildings to reduce energy consumption and optimize energy efficiency. See VTDigger article.

https://vtdigger.org/2021/07/04/climate-council-has-until-december-...

Chris,

BUILDINGS

The standard “weatherizing”, at about $10,000 each, as practiced by Vermont, is totally inadequate for Vermont’s energy hog houses.
It is next to useless to make those houses suitable for heat pumps.

The only way to come anywhere near any CO2 goals, is to build EACH YEAR several thousand net-zero-energy houses and apartments, and energy-surplus houses and apartments.

All of them would need solar panels, batteries, and heat pumps, and large hot water storage tanks.

The energy surplus houses/apartments would have extra solar panels and extra batteries to power EVs.

GAS GUZZLER TAX

As you know, EAN has grossly overestimated the CO2 reduction of an EV, (about 4.5 metric ton/y/EV), because of incorrect assumptions.
The actual reduction is much less.

Vermont needs a gas-guzzler code to impose a fee on low-mileage vehicles.
The more below 40-mpg, the greater would be the fee.
Vehicles with greater than 40-mpg, such as the 54-mpg Toyota Prius, would be exempt.

EVs

RE folks would have everyone drive unaffordable EVs, that would not reduce much CO2 compared with EFFICIENT gasoline vehicles.

On a lifetime, A-to-Z basis, with travel at 105,600 miles over 10 years, the CO2 emissions, based on the present New England grid CO2/kWh, would be:

NISSAN Leaf S Plus, EV, compact SUV, no AWD, would emit 25.967 Mt, 246 g/mile; about a FIFTY PERCENT REDUCTION compared to the present VT LDV mix, which includes larger vehicles than the Nissan Leaf.

TOYOTA Prius L Eco, 62 mpg, compact car, no AWD, would emit 26.490 Mt, 251 g/mile
SUBARU Outback, 30 mpg, medium SUV, with AWD, would emit 43.015 Mt, 407 g/mile
VT LDV mix, 22.7 mpg, many with AWD or 4WD, would emit 56.315 Mt, 533 g/mile

https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/electric-bus-systems-l...

HEAT PUMPS

Heat Pumps are Money Losers in my Vermont House (as they are in almost all Vermont houses)

My annual electricity consumption increased about 50% (the various taxes, fees, and surcharges also increased), after I installed three Mitsubishi, 24,000 Btu/h heat pumps, each with 2 heads; 2 in the living room, 1 in the kitchen, and 1 in each of 3 bedrooms.
The heat pumps last about 15 years.

http://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/vermont-co2-reduction-o...

They are used for heating and cooling my 35-y-old, well-sealed/well-insulated house. It has 2” of blueboard (R-10 vs R-0.67 for 8” concrete) on the outside of the concrete foundation and under the basement slab which has saved me many thousands of heating dollars over the 35 years.

Before heat pumps, my space-heating propane was 1000 gal/y, after heat pumps, it was 830 gal/y, a reduction of 170 gal/y, or $310/y, at $2.399/gal. Additional electricity costs were $609/y. I am losing money
Domestic hot water, DHW, heating, requires about 200 gallon/y

My existing Viessmann propane system, 95%-efficient in condensing mode, is used on cold days, 15F or less, because heat pumps have low efficiencies, i.e., low Btu/kWh, at exactly the same time my house would need the most heat; a perverse situation, due to the laws of Physics 101!!

The heat pumps would be slightly more efficient than electric resistance heaters at -10F, the Vermont HVAC design temperature. It would be extremely irrational to operate air source heat pumps, at such temperatures.

I have had no energy cost savings, because of high household electric rates, augmented with taxes, fees and surcharges. Vermont forcing, with subsidies, the addition of expensive RE electricity to the mix, would make matters worse!!

Amortizing the $24,000 turnkey capital cost at 3.5%/y for 15 years costs about $2,059/y; I am losing money.

There likely will be service calls and parts for the heat pumps, as the years go by, in addition to annual service calls and parts for the existing propane system; I am losing more money.

https://www.myamortizationchart.com

NOTE:
If I had a highly sealed, highly insulated house, with the same efficient propane heating system, my house would use very little energy for heating.
If I would install heat pumps* and would operate the propane system on only the coldest days, I likely would have energy cost savings.
However, those annual energy cost savings would be overwhelmed by the annual amortizing cost, i.e., I would still be losing money, if amortizing were considered.

* I likely would need 3 units at 18,000 Btu/h, at a lesser turnkey capital cost. Their output, very-inefficiently produced, would be about 27,000 Btu/h at -10F, the Vermont HVAC design temperature.

NOTE: VT-Department of Public Service found, after a survey of 77 heat pumps installed in Vermont houses (turnkey cost for a one-head HP system is about $4,500), the annual energy cost savings were, on average, $200, but the annual amortizing costs turned that gain into a loss of $200, i.e., on average, these houses were unsuitable for heat pumps, and the owners were losing money.

http://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/cost-savings-of-air-sou...

Comment by Kenneth Capron on July 1, 2021 at 12:12am

I don't disagree with Bob and Penny et al. But I have to caution that the only option available to block the climate folks is to elect a LePage type who is willing to immediately cause the demise of the wind towers wherever they are. You do that by insisting on an upfront deposit that would cover the full cost of removing the towers and restoring the sites to their original natural site. And the same for solar panels. Millions of dollars of upfront cash with a CPI add-on each year as prices go up.

If that won't work, expand mining on certain mountains.


Comment by Robert Feller on June 30, 2021 at 11:20am

These idiots never took a basic economics course in college and have probably never even heard of the book 'Wealth of Nations" written by Adam Smith.  Simply put, any entity that cannot stand by itself and requires government subsidy to exist is not feasible in the real world.  Warren Buffet clearly stated that without subsidies neither wind or solar make any sense and yet our democrat politicians continue to repeat the mistakes of the past, whitewashing the failures and repack it to a new group of unintelligent and gullible millennials making them think that they are actually making a difference in the climate.  All of this to make money [and lots of it] for the entities that donate to their campaigns.  We have met the enemy and it is them.  

Comment by Penny Gray on June 30, 2021 at 11:03am

They're still spouting the same old B.S.  It's actually quite funny to see that second article here about our looming double digit increases in electric bills due to the unreliables we've chosen to power our state. 

What a disgraceful legacy we're leaving behind for future generations to clean up.  Kibby Mountain and that whole area of the state of Maine was once a grand, wild place.  Lots more destruction to come.

 

Maine as Third World Country:

CMP Transmission Rate Skyrockets 19.6% Due to Wind Power

 

Click here to read how the Maine ratepayer has been sold down the river by the Angus King cabal.

Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT

******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********

(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/

Not yet a member?

Sign up today and lend your voice and presence to the steadily rising tide that will soon sweep the scourge of useless and wretched turbines from our beloved Maine countryside. For many of us, our little pieces of paradise have been hard won. Did the carpetbaggers think they could simply steal them from us?

We have the facts on our side. We have the truth on our side. All we need now is YOU.

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

 -- Mahatma Gandhi

"It's not whether you get knocked down: it's whether you get up."
Vince Lombardi 

Task Force membership is free. Please sign up today!

Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law

Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future

"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."

https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/

© 2024   Created by Webmaster.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service