Massachusetts ratepayers to pay extra $512 million for transmission line through Maine
Three Massachusetts utilities and a transmission line developer have agreed to pass along $512 million in added costs to Massachusetts ratepayers for an electric transmission project in western Maine.
Posted Yesterday at 9:38 PM
Updated at 7:18 AM
DAVID SHARP
Associated Press
EXCERPTS
Three Massachusetts utilities and Central Maine Power’s parent company have agreed that Massachusetts ratepayers must shoulder $512 million in additional costs caused by delays in construction of a power transmission project in Maine that will allow Canadian hydropower to reach the New England power grid.
Proponents said Wednesday that the project aimed at supplying enough clean energy to power about 1 million homes still represents a good deal for ratepayers and the environment despite delays and new costs.
“Even with these unanticipated costs, this is clean energy at a pretty good price. I’m not sure we’ll be at prices this low in the future. So we should grit our teeth, absorb the extra expense and get on with it,” said Massachusetts state Sen. Michael Barrett of Lexington, co-chair of the Legislature’s Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy Committee.
The project’s cost grew from $1 billion to at least $1.5 billion because of inflation and delays caused by opponents, requiring the Massachusetts Legislature to give its approval late last year for most of the added costs to be passed on to ratepayers.........................
.......................Supporters of the project say the 1,200 megawatts of electricity it provides would lower electric rates across the region, reduce carbon pollution and help Massachusetts to meet its clean energy goals. Developers previously said they expect the project to be completed by late next year but there are provisions for pushing the completion date further back...................
Avangrid and Canada’s Hydro Quebec teamed up on the project that called for a 145-mile (233-kilometer) power transmission line, mostly following existing corridors. But a new 53-mile (85-kilometer) section had to be carved through the woods to reach the Canadian border, something environmental and conservation groups decried.
https://www.pressherald.com/2024/10/30/massachusetts-ratepayers-to-...
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Comment by Dan McKay on November 1, 2024 at 5:34am
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1200 megawatts of 24/7 power injection in Lewiston, Maine. I wonder if there are any data centers/AI centers taking notice of an opportunity.
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/
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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/
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