Wind Power News: Maine
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Fed funds will go to UMaine wind energy, mass timber programs
The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee has approved an energy and water funding bill that includes support for several research and development projects at the University of Maine. The bill is expected to provide funding for UMaine’s offshore wind energy demonstration project, Aqua Ventus, according to a news release from the office of U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. Also included is support for a program to create energy-efficient, high-rise mass timber building systems. Collins is a senior member of the Appropriations . . . Complete story »
Commissioners divided on Hancock Wind settlement
ELLSWORTH – In a split vote Tuesday, the Hancock County Commissioners agreed to settle with Hancock Wind over the amount of community benefit funds the wind farm has been issuing to the county. Commissioners Bill Clark and John Wombacher voted in favor of the agreement. Chairman Antonio Blasi voted against. Community benefit funds, which are required by Maine law, are an annual payment the company makes to Hancock County for the public good based on the wind farm’s revenues. Hancock Wind . . . Complete story »
Hancock County reaches settlement over wind farm payments it said were too small
Hancock County has reached a preliminary agreement in a dispute with a wind energy firm over community benefit payments that the firm had agreed to make to the county. The county filed suit in the fall against Hancock Wind, a subsidiary of Novatus Energy, after the company made annual payments to the county that were less than what the county expected. With the tentative agreement, which was reached after the parties went to mediation last week, Hancock Wind can continue . . . Complete story »
Hancock County, wind firm head to mediation over $38,000
Hancock County is at odds with the developer of a local wind farm over about $38,000 that the county says the developer owes in community benefit payments. Hancock County commissioners are meeting Thursday in Bangor with representatives of Hancock Wind, owned and operated by Novatus Energy, to see if they might work out a deal. Hancock Wind is a 17-turbine installation in the Unorganized Territory northeast of Ellsworth that was erected in 2016. The lawsuit was filed last fall after . . . Complete story »
State utility regulators approve power contract for planned Hancock County wind farm
State regulators have approved a long-term power contract for a wind energy development planned for Hancock County. The Maine Public Utilities Commission on Friday unanimously supported a contract under which Emera Maine will pay Weaver Wind LLC 3.5 cents/kWh with increases of 2.5 percent annually, commission officials said in a release. Weaver Wind is a 72.6 megawatt wind-to-energy project being developed by Longroad Energy in the Hancock County towns of Eastbrook and Osborn. The project – which had stalled under prior . . . Complete story »
Mills signs wind bill, announces plans to advance offshore energy
Stalled efforts to test a floating wind farm off the Maine coast got back on track Wednesday after Gov. Janet Mills signed legislation directing the Public Utilities Commission to approve the contract for Maine Aqua Ventus, a first-of-its-kind wind project in the United States. “With the innovative work being done at the University of Maine, our state has the potential to lead the world in floating offshore wind development,” Mills said. “This long-overdue bill will move us in that direction.” . . . Complete story »
After pause, Maine may have missed the boat on offshore wind
Six months ago, a Norwegian company called Equinor submitted a winning bid of $135 million to lease a patch of ocean bottom off Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts from the federal government. It won a similar lease off New Jersey in 2016. Last winter the company submitted a third bid, off New York, and this summer is expected to bid on another round of leases off Massachusetts. Why all the investment activity? The Northeast coast of the United States could become . . . Complete story »
ISO-NE will require wind, intermittent hydro to bid into day-ahead energy markets
Dive Brief: ISO New England now requires wind- and intermittent hydro resources with a capacity supply obligation to offer into the grid operator’s day-ahead energy market, the grid operator announced Tuesday. The grid operator called it “another milestone” in its efforts to incorporate renewables into the regional marketplace. The requirement, effective June 1, comes three years after the ISO launched the Do Not Exceed (DNE) dispatch project, enabling those resources to take electronic dispatch instructions from the grid operator. Requiring DNE resources to participate . . . Complete story »
Offshore wind bill flawed
Two wrongs don’t make a right. Though perhaps well intended, LD 994, related to offshore wind energy, is deeply flawed. While it was recently approved by the Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee, let’s be clear: In August 2018, the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) re-opened the term sheet for the Maine Aqua Ventus (MAV) project asking for clarification on eight items. MAV had still not filed a response when the committee held a hearing on May 16. The committee is . . . Complete story »
State approves 22-turbine wind project for Hancock County
The state has approved a $147.5 million industrial wind-to-energy facility proposed for Hancock County after a four-year delay caused by concerns about the project’s impact on area bats and birds. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection announced its awarding of a site permit to Longroad Energy’s 22-turbine Weaver Wind project in Eastbrook and Osborn on Friday. Opponents have 30 days to appeal to the Maine Board of Environmental Protection, spokesman Mark Bergeron said. Attempts to contact Longroad were not immediately . . . Complete story »
