Solar farm projects downsize to comply with new Maine law
By Lora Whelan, Quoddy Tides
March 9, 2024
“We will continue to develop future projects in Maine under the new structure and will work to make them financially viable at the 1 MW limit.”
A 2023 change in Maine law means that two of four Nexamp solar farm projects in Washington County will lose over half of their generating capacity when online.
Nexamp Communications Manager Keith Hevenor explained the company is continuing to work within the new framework and will try to modify those projects affected by the change in the net energy billing (NEB) law that now limits megawatt (MW) production for the farms in question to 1 MW or less.
Originally the projects in Lubec and Eastport were expected to produce 2.7 MW each, or enough power each to serve about 450-500 average single-family homes.
Nexamp, a community solar energy company, has 25 operational solar farms in Maine with dozens more in the works. The four ongoing solar farm projects in Washington County are located in Cutler, Eastport, Lubec and Pembroke.
The change in law does not impact the Cutler and Pembroke projects, which are further along in their development than the Eastport and Lubec projects. The Cutler farm is expected to produce 2.5 MW, and the Pembroke farm should produce 4.3 MW.
“Both are close to going online in the next few months,” Hevenor said. In February, the Town of Cutler enacted a 180-day moratorium on permit applications for solar and wind farms, cell towers and subdivisions, but the Nexamp project, because it was already permitted, will continue as planned.
Because of the change in NEB law, “most projects will need to be 1 MW or smaller,” said Henry Barrett, the Nexamp business development manager for New England. The Lubec and Eastport projects, because they were not as far along as the other two, now fall into this smaller category.
In addition, Nexamp is awaiting the results of the Versant Power cluster studies, which examine transmission systems and the capacity of the power grid to take on additional energy as required by ISONew England. Barrett noted the studies have not been completed yet, but he heard they should have the results by the end of April.
“We’re still committed to advancing the projects in Maine,” Barrett added. The projects will be smaller and will not benefit from economies of scale to the same degree. However, Hevenor noted “the 15% fixed discount remains for all current and future projects at this time” that Nexamp customers receive as credits on the supply-side of their electric bill.
The change in law was a surprise and a disappointment, said Hevenor.
Article continues at https://themainemonitor.org/solar-farm-projects-downsize/
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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
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(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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