Maine

The legal challenge brought by Conservation Law Foundation to Maine’s dismantling of net metering has hit another delay.

In a state whose governor is staunchly anti-renewable energy, more than 25 municipal projects have been built and an island is pushing for energy independence by 2030.

Following Governor LePage’s wind ban, developers are going solar. The 100 MW project will be the largest north of Virginia if completed.

In late April, daytime net demand fell below overnight power consumption for the first time on the New England grid, thanks to rooftop and other behind-the-meter solar.

Utilities have been trying to dismantle net metering and/or wreck the economics of customer-sited solar for years. In the first quarter of 2018, they saw some significant victories.

The second attempt to overturn the idiosyncratic governor’s veto of a solar policy fix has again failed by two votes.

The Maine House fell two votes short of overturning Governor LePage’s veto of a bill that would have preserved key aspects of net metering in the state. However, the measure will be reconsidered on Monday.

The bill also increases the potential number of subscribers at community solar installations to 50. But with Governor LePage expected to veto the bill, the fight has just begun.

A bill which would return an essential feature of the state’s net metering policy has passed the Maine Senate, but has a long road ahead of it.

Solar installers and advocates are stunned that they now only have three weeks to install systems for homeowners before their customers are hit with new, less generous net metering rules.