Maine solar projects crippled following veto on key bill

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Despite a large amount of support, the new solar bill was vetoed by Maine Governor Paul LePage. Image: Terry Ross / Flickr

The fallout from Maine Governor Paul LePage’s decision to veto a bill that would replace electricity credits with long-term contracts for solar power is finally starting to take hold in the Pine Tree State.

According to the Portland Press Herald, a number of Maine towns and cities are reconsidering plans to develop large-scale solar energy projects as a result of the vetoed legislation.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Communities such as Falmouth, Portland, South Portland and Rockland were planning on constructing PV installations atop capped landfills – with power generated from the sites issued to municipal buildings, schools and streetlights in order to cut electricity costs.

While these landfill sites were expected to receive millions of dollars from private solar developers, they also needed the passage of the new bill in order to shift the way in which solar producers are paid for the electricity they generate.

A presentation by TRC Engineers regarding a planned PV landfill project in Cumberland County was cancelled last week due to uncertainty with the state’s ruling.

Maine’s current state policy on net metering limits the size of installations eligible for credits to 660kW and only permits solar farms to feed 10 meters at a time. The vetoed solar bill would have amended those regulations in an effort to boost the amount of PV-generated electricity in Maine from 18MW to 250MW in five years.

Not only would the new bill have replaced these credits with fixed-price contracts, it would have also increased the cap on PV projects to 2,000kW and cut the restriction of 10 meters per install.

The bill was endorsed by solar developers, Maine’s utility companies, environmentalists and others, but it was still vetoed by LePage – who stated that the bill would increase the cost of electricity for other ratepayers.

The legislation was taken off the table last month after the Maine House of Representative fell two votes shy of the two-thirds majority necessary to reverse LePage’s veto.

While the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is moving forward with a separate review of the state’s net metering policy, a slew of proposed solar projects have already been halted.

The town of Falmouth hoped to issue a solar array out to bid this summer and already researched engineering and feasibility studies for a solar farm that could produce up to 25% of the community’s power. The Press Herald reported that plans to develop the farm have been put on hold until the state rules are cleared up.

While Maine may lag behind other New England states when it comes to PV capacity, it still boasts plenty of potential. The Maine Municipal Association estimates that there are 728 hectares of capped landfills in the state. If 40% of that land was developed for solar, it could produce electricity equivalent to US$25 million in costs currently paid by towns and cities in bills. 

21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.
16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

October 7, 2025
Solar PV will account for almost 80% of the 4.6TW of new renewable power expected to be added by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
October 7, 2025
Doral Renewables has secured a PPA with an unnamed 'corporate buyer' for its 430MW Cold Creek solar-plus-storage project in Texas.
October 7, 2025
US independent power producer (IPP) Arevon has begun operations at two utility-scale solar projects in Indiana.
Premium
October 6, 2025
Talon PV aims to be the first US company to safely manufacture TOPCon cells at scale, backed by European technology and a crucial First Solar licensing deal.
October 6, 2025
US utility AES Corporation is reportedly in discussions to be acquired by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a subsidiary of global asset owning giant BlackRock.
October 3, 2025
Renewables developer Madison Energy Infrastructure has bought the US distributed generation assets of NextEra Energy Resources.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK