Construction on controversial CMP corridor to resume next month - WMTW Portland
Construction on controversial CMP corridor to resume in August
Construction on controversial CMP corridor to resume next week
Project stopped for 21 months following a referendum in 2021
Central Maine Power will resume construction on its controversial power corridor through the Maine woods next Thursday, August 3, according to Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Melanie Loyzim.
Before resuming its work, CMP and New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC), were required to give formal notice of its start date to DEP.
"Commissioner Loyzim advised licensees that construction may resume on Aug. 3, that all permit conditions remain in effect, and that third party inspectors must conduct inspections at least weekly or after any substantial rain event," DEP said in a written statement on Friday.
A substantial rain event is defined as at least a half inch of rain in a 24-hour period.
The controversial 145-mile electricity corridor will carry electricity generated by hydropower in Quebec to a Lewistion substation connected to the New England grid, primarily for the benefit of Massachusetts residents.
Maine voters blocked the project in a 2021 referendum, but a jury trial in 2023 resurrected it.
In May, DEP lifted its suspension issued in November 2021, two weeks after Maine voters resoundingly backed the referendum to stop the corridor 59% to 41%.
CMP and NECEC immediately sued the state, arguing the referendum imposed a retroactive law that violated the company's vested rights on a lawfully permitted project for which it had spent $450 million of a $1 billion budget.
On April 20, a Cumberland County civil jury unanimously found in favor of CMP and NECEC 9-0, and none of the eligible parties filed an appeal.
DEP documents and information for this project are available on the Department’s website at https://www.maine.gov/dep/land/projects/necec/index.html
CMP and NECEC are subsidiaries of Avangrid, which is owned by Spain-based Iberdrola.
The corridor project triggered a robust debate over its environmental impact and economic value in Maine.
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