Statement from New England Clean Energy Connect on Preliminary Injunction Decision
December 16, 2021 -- AUGUSTA, ME – The following statement was issued on behalf of NECEC:
“While we are disappointed in the court’s decision on the preliminary injunction, we remain confident that the full legal process will ultimately conclude that question one is unconstitutional. As one of the region’s most important clean energy projects, the NECEC will benefit Maine and all New Englanders by reducing the region’s dependence on fossil fuels which will result in cleaner air, lower energy prices and improved reliability.
As Mainers face stiff increases on their electric bills this winter after generators significantly increased the price they charge for electricity, the region’s independent grid operator, ISO New England, called out the need for greater fuel diversity and baseload generation, pointing to the NECEC as a solution.
The facts are clear: the NECEC project is good for Maine and for the region and will help address the energy, economic and climate issues we face. That is why we remain committed to this project and its many benefits and look forward to restarting construction as soon as we are able.”
ABOUT THE NECEC PROJECT
The New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) is a $950 million investment that will deliver 1,200 megawatts of renewable hydropower to the New England energy grid in Lewiston, Maine. All the costs will be paid for by Massachusetts electric customers. Once built, the NECEC would be New England’s largest source of renewable energy, representing a fundamental shift away from fossil fuels while simultaneously lowering energy costs in Maine and New England.
The 145-mile transmission line is being built on land owned or controlled by Central Maine Power. The 53 miles of new corridor on working forest land uses a new clearing technique of tapered vegetation; the remaining two-thirds of the project follows existing power lines created for the state’s hydroelectric industry almost a century ago. Construction is scheduled to be completed by the Spring of 2023.
The project will create an average of more than 1,600 good-paying jobs annually during the two-and-a-half-year construction period, provide $200 million in upgrades to Maine’s energy grid, making Maine’s electricity service more reliable. The NECEC will allow more producers of renewable energy in Maine to get their energy on the grid, and because the corridor project will use clean hydropower, it will reduce the use of fossil fuels, cutting three million metric tons of dirty emissions each year.
The NECEC will also deliver significant economic benefits to Maine, including lower electricity prices, increased local real estate taxes, and reduced energy costs, as well as benefits like expanded fiber optic cable for broadband service in Somerset and Franklin counties, and economic development funding for Western Maine.
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