A huge wind farm is coming to northern Maine. How will it impact bills?
A historic wind energy project approved by Maine regulators is poised to deliver the largest renewable power installation in state history, though significant federal hurdles remain before construction can begin.
The Maine Public Utilities Commission recently awarded the rights to develop an 800-megawatt wind farm in Aroostook County to Clearway Energy, a San Francisco-based clean energy developer. Paired with that project is a 111-mile transmission line that Avangrid, the parent company of Central Maine Power, is expected to build. The line would run primarily along existing transmission corridors from Haynesville to Pittsfield, connecting northern Maine's wind resources to the broader New England power grid.
The project stems from a 2021 law signed by Gov. Janet Mills, known as the Northern Maine Renewable Energy Development Program. That legislation directed state utility regulators to pursue clean power generation in Aroostook County and the infrastructure needed to move that energy south. An initial attempt to broker such a deal fell apart in late 2023 when negotiations between regulators and a transmission developer collapsed over price.
PUC Chair Philip Bartlett said the first round of negotiations taught regulators important lessons. This time, Maine brought four other New England states into the partnership: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, and Rhode Island. The states will share oversight and the cost of building the transmission line, with Maine consumers on the hook for roughly 11 percent of that expense. Maine also employed a voluntary agreement structure that streamlined negotiations between states and developers.
"Developing new energy resources and transmission in Northern Maine can help deliver more affordable and reliable power, strengthen our grid, reduce Maine's exposure to energy cost volatility, and create thousands of jobs and new economic opportunities in rural communities," Mills said in a statement. "This is a historic opportunity to put Maine's energy resources to work for ratepayers while supporting investment and economic development in Northern Maine."
The project is expected to generate an estimated 2,500 construction jobs and bring approximately $150 million in new local and state tax revenue. The PUC projects a total economic impact of nearly $2.5 billion.
Roughly three-quarters of the electricity generated will stay in Maine, with the remainder flowing to other New England states. Bartlett outlined three ways the project could save Maine ratepayers money over its decades-long lifespan. Beyond sharing the transmission costs across five states, regulators anticipate savings on long-term contracts for both transmission and electricity generation. The PUC estimates Maine consumers could ultimately see up to $425 million in net benefits.
The timing of the new generation also matters. Aroostook County's winds blow strongest during winter months, precisely when Maine's grid typically faces its greatest strain. Adding 800 megawatts of capacity during peak demand could help stabilize prices during the most expensive time of year.
Before any of that happens, however, the project must clear a federal review that could prove difficult. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is expected to examine the wind farm and transmission line over the next year or so, with additional environmental review still to come. Under the best circumstances, construction would not be completed until the early 2030s.
The Trump administration has taken a notably skeptical stance toward wind energy. The president has moved to block offshore wind projects, and earlier this year he told Interior Secretary Doug Burgum that he hopes no windmills are built during his second term. The president has characterized wind turbines as environmentally harmful, citing bird deaths, though research has shown that outdoor cats kill vastly more birds each year than wind turbines.
The Department of Energy, which oversees the federal agency regulating wind farm permitting, did not respond to requests for comment.
If federal approvals do come through, Bartlett believes the long wait will have been worthwhile. For now, Maine regulators are betting that tapping into the northern part of the state, long considered too remote to connect meaningfully to the southern grid, can deliver cheaper power and economic opportunity to a region that has often been left behind.
