New Hampshire Public Radio reports:
Massachusetts energy officials have announced they're going with Plan B to bring Canadian hydroelectric power to the Bay State.
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They've selected a back-up project that runs transmission lines through Maine, after New Hampshire state regulators refused to allow Plan A – the controversial Northern Pass project.
But the Maine project, known as New England Clean Energy Connect, also faces an uncertain future.
In Massachusetts, the announcement got kudos and criticism from those closely watching the state's selection of a massive clean energy project:
“We're pleased that the process is moving ahead and Northern Pass has been terminated,” says Brad Campbell, head of the Conservation Law Foundation.
CLF vigorously opposed Northern Pass, for many of the same environmental reasons that caused New Hampshire siting officials to reject the Eversource project in February.
That rejection threw a wrench in Massachusetts’ utilities’ negotiations of a 20-year contract to buy Northern Pass’ electricity.
On Wednesday, Massachusetts officials pulled the plug on the proposal, and went with Plan B – to bring hydroelectric power from Quebec through Maine.
Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities will begin hearings into the New England Clean Energy Connect project at the end of April.
Its developer, Central Maine Power or CMP, is a subsidiary of international energy giant Avangrid and is the largest transmission provider in Maine.
Campbell says CMP’s project also poses environmental concerns – but they're manageable.
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