BOWDOINHAM — Bowdoinham Town Manager Nicole Briand said she doesn’t yet know how or whether the town’s proposed solar project will be affected by Central Maine Power’s recent announcement that some solar projects could require costly upgrades before going live.
Selectmen have approved a power purchase agreement with Revision Energy that is contingent on voter approval. As part of the proposal, Revision will install a solar array on the roof of the public works building to generate enough power to cover the electric needs for the town’s municipal buildings and street lights. The town would save approximately $1,000 over the first year and $40,000 over the course of the 20-year agreement.
The town had planned to put the power purchase agreement before voters at the June 9 town meeting.
Last week, however, it was reported by the Portland Press Herald that many developers have received emails from CMP indicating that their projects are causing technical problems at substations that could require costly upgrades.
CMP does a system impact study to make sure the substation and local distribution network can handle the new power generated by a solar project. Any upgrade costs are paid by the developer. An “interconnection agreement” seals the deal.
Gov. Janet Mills on Monday asked the Maine Public Utilities Commission to open an investigation into why CMP is belatedly telling solar developers that their projects are causing technical problems at substations and could require multi-million dollar upgrades.
Briand said Bowdoinham’s interconnection fee was expected to range between $5,000 and $10,000 but will be determined by a system impact study. Briand told selectmen Tuesday she doesn’t know how far along that study is.
The infrastructure issues raised by CMP may affect when Bowdoinham submits its application, Briand said. It is still unclear if this is a case-by-case issue or if it will affect all solar applications before the utility.
“We don’t know how this will affect our application if it will,” Briand added. “We do have a fairly small project.”
Wendy Rose, chair of Bowdoinham’s Community Development Advisory Committee tasked with researching solar options for the town, raised similar concerns Wednesday. She questioned if the upgrades required are for all solar projects, or if it is just very large farms generating large volumes of power that are a problem.
“I think everybody is scrambling to see what the heck CMP is meaning with this statement,” Rose said. “The solar projects are so important to the state. Hopefully, some good minds will be brought to bear on a good solution.”
Rose said in November 2020 that there is a closing window of time for tax credits. Investors get a 26% tax credit for solar array projects in 2020, and then the tax credit decreases in 2021, she said. By approving Revision Energy’s proposal contingently in 2020, Rose said it allows the project investor to get the 26% tax credit.
Briand said she doesn’t expect this is an issue that will be resolved quickly. If the power purchase agreement isn’t ready for approval at the town meeting in June, voters may instead be asked to authorize selectmen to sign a power purchase agreement, “should everything work out.”
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