Work is restarting on that Maine hydropower line

by David Brooks | Aug 1, 2023 | Blog, Newsletter | 0 comments

I thought the future wasn’t settled yet for the HVDC line bringing Quebec hydropower into Maine, but the company has resumed work, according to this AP story.

The cost of the project, originally estimated at around $1 billion, has grown to $1.5 billion as litigation delayed construction and inflation cause prices to creep upward. Avangrid, the corporate parent of Central Maine Power, partnered with Hydro-Quebec on the power line project – dubbed the New England Clean Energy Connect – to bring 1,200 megawatts of hydropower to meet green energy goals in Massachusetts. That represents enough electricity for about 1 million homes.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection restored permits for the project in May after a lengthy court battle, but work did not resume immediately because of concerns about the growing costs. The Massachusetts Legislature is advancing legislation allowing transmission service agreements to be renegotiated to recover the cost increases. The 145-mile power transmission line will stretch from Lewiston, Maine, to the Canadian border, mostly following existing utility corridors. The permit fight was over a new, 53-mile section in western Maine.

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