The Maine Public Utilities Commission (Commission) has announced the results of its request for proposals (RFP), issued as part of the Northern Maine Renewable Energy Development Program. Following its review of the proposals, the Commission selected an 800 MW generation project for contract negotiations and identified its preferred transmission project.
For the transmission component, the Commission selected a proposal from Avangrid Networks for a 1,200 MW transmission line terminating at Haynesville. It said the proposal makes maximum practical use of existing transmission corridors, while the developer has secured nearly all the rights of way required for the project. The Commission also found that the proposal offered the strongest prospects for development within a commercially reasonable timeframe.
For generation, the Commission selected an 800 MW onshore wind project proposed by Clearway Energy Group, with the award covering both energy and renewable energy certificates (RECs), subject to the transmission project moving forward. Maine's share of the project will be approximately 600 MW.
The selection leaves 400 MW of capacity available on the transmission line. The Commission plans to issue additional RFPs to increase utilisation of the line.
The procurement involves Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and Rhode Island. The states are working together to integrate northern Maine's renewable energy resources into the wider regional grid, including coordination on cost allocation, interconnection standards and project oversight. The states will share the cost of the transmission line, with Maine responsible for less than 11% of the total cost.
Next steps include finalising a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Clearway for Maine's share of the new generation and obtaining the Commission's final review and approval of the agreement.
The transmission component will also require approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The Commission has recommended that the New England States Committee on Electricity, the regional state committee recognised by FERC, work with the participating states and Avangrid to finalise a Voluntary Agreement (VA) for submission to FERC.
