AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine utility regulators are taking another look at a contract that finances an offshore wind energy project.
The Portland Press Herald reports the Maine Public Utilities Commission voted Tuesday to re-open a contract that regulators worry could raise rates for electric customers. An average Central Maine Power home customer could see a roughly 73 cents extra monthly cost in the project’s first year.
The University of Maine-led Maine Aqua Ventus project expected to begin in 2020 involves two floating wind turbines off Monhegan Island.
Natural Resources Council of Maine Clean Energy Director Dylan Voorhees said Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s administration is thwarting renewable energy jobs.
It wasn’t immediately clear how Maine Aqua Ventus would proceed. Lawyers for the venture have said they could appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.
