'Not what you sign up for': Mainers lose money on community solar
In Maine, utility customers can subscribe to community solar projects to help fund solar production across the state. Some solar subscription companies advertise big savings for supporting clean energy production, but 8 Investigates found that sometimes the offers are too good to be true. Lisa Cloutier and her wife, Jennifer Fudge-Cloutier, thought they were doing something good for the environment. When a salesperson for Arcadia came to their door offering a solar subscription, they ended up signing up on the spot.”We thought we were going to help the planet. We didn’t know it would take half of a paycheck,” said Lisa. They signed up at the end of 2023, and their bills started going up a few months into their contract. It didn’t seem to align with how much electricity they were using. By January 2025, they were facing a nearly $600 bill for their small single-family apartment. “They make it look good on the pamphlet,” said Jennifer. “They really do, and it’s — it’s not,” added Lisa. “It’s not what you sign up for. It’s sad.”When you sign up for a solar subscription, Central Maine Power will still deliver your electricity (Versant if you live in Northern Maine), and you’ll start getting two separate bills: one from CMP and another from the company that handles your solar subscription. Whatever you pay on your solar bill will be translated into credits on your CMP bill. Then you’ll pay CMP for the difference, plus a small delivery cost. The part that catches consumers off guard is that your solar bill isn’t based on your energy usage. It’s based on how much energy the solar farm produced during that cycle and what percentage of the farm you’re subscribed to. If someone is oversubscribed, they end up paying for more credits than they could possibly use, which is what happened to Lisa and Jennifer. Based on an analysis of their bills and their energy usage, 8 Investigates calculated that, on average, Lisa and Jennifer were paying more than triple what they would have been spending without a solar subscription. By the time they canceled their contract, they had 7,232 unused credits. After one year, those credits expire. “So, you’re paying for electricity that you can’t even use,” said Jennifer. “If they expire, then it’s gone. You paid for it.”“It’s a loss of money,” added Lisa. “It’s not fair to the customers.”PHNjcmlwdCBpZD0iaW5mb2dyYW1fMF8xNmE4MjlmNC1kNjllLTQ5MTUtODgzYS02YTEwMGJiYjYzOGUiIHRpdGxlPSJFbGVjdHJpYyBtb250aGx5IGNvc3QgY29tcGFyaXNvbiIgc3JjPSJodHRwczovL2UuaW5mb2dyYW0uY29tL2pzL2Rpc3QvZW1iZWQuanM/YllYIiB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiPjwvc2NyaXB0Pg==Using Public Utility Commission filings, 8 Investigates found that in 2023, CMP customers enrolled in community solar programs lost $2.28 million in expired credits. Seventy-three percent of those credits belonged to residential customers. Mainers like Lisa and Jennifer lost $1.67 million in one year. “If they’re going to be allowed to come into this state and offer these things, then there should be someone to look into them,” said Jennifer. When we reached out to Arcadia for comment, the vice president and general manager of energy services, Joel Gamoran, said, “Arcadia always intends to align subscribers with the appropriate subscription size, and we take our customers’ concerns seriously whenever we hear of any misalignment. As these instances have surfaced, we’ve worked to remedy them as quickly as possible. We have already resolved several of these issues for customers in Maine and are actively working to resolve the rest.”Arcadia Community Solar recently went through a merger with Boston-based company Perch Energy. 8 Investigates connected Lisa and Jennifer to the Maine Office of Public Advocate, where a consumer advocate was able to work with Arcadia to save them close to $1,000 that they still owed after canceling their solar subscription. A consumer advisor for the OPA says Arcadia has been willing to work with them to resolve similar issues for other customers as well. If you think you may be overpaying for your subscription, check your CMP bill. On the second or third page, you can see how many credits are going unused. Then, call your solar provider and tell them you want to reduce your subscription, or you’ll have to cancel your account. If you’re still having trouble, reach out to the OPA for help. A consumer advisor for the OPA says 38% of their consumer complaints in the last six months, have been related to solar. If you end up choosing to cancel your account, you may be on the hook for a few months of bills following the cancellation since most solar companies are on a different billing cycle than CMP.If you’re thinking about signing up for a solar subscription, don’t sign up without looking at a contract first and be sure to read the fine print. Many of these contracts allow the provider to increase your subscription without notice.
In Maine, utility customers can subscribe to community solar projects to help fund solar production across the state.
Some solar subscription companies advertise big savings for supporting clean energy production, but 8 Investigates found that sometimes the offers are too good to be true.
Lisa Cloutier and her wife, Jennifer Fudge-Cloutier, thought they were doing something good for the environment. When a salesperson for Arcadia came to their door offering a solar subscription, they ended up signing up on the spot.
“We thought we were going to help the planet. We didn’t know it would take half of a paycheck,” said Lisa.
They signed up at the end of 2023, and their bills started going up a few months into their contract.
It didn’t seem to align with how much electricity they were using.
By January 2025, they were facing a nearly $600 bill for their small single-family apartment.
“They make it look good on the pamphlet,” said Jennifer.
“They really do, and it’s — it’s not,” added Lisa. “It’s not what you sign up for. It’s sad.”
When you sign up for a solar subscription, Central Maine Power will still deliver your electricity (Versant if you live in Northern Maine), and you’ll start getting two separate bills: one from CMP and another from the company that handles your solar subscription.
Whatever you pay on your solar bill will be translated into credits on your CMP bill. Then you’ll pay CMP for the difference, plus a small delivery cost.
The part that catches consumers off guard is that your solar bill isn’t based on your energy usage. It’s based on how much energy the solar farm produced during that cycle and what percentage of the farm you’re subscribed to.
If someone is oversubscribed, they end up paying for more credits than they could possibly use, which is what happened to Lisa and Jennifer.
Based on an analysis of their bills and their energy usage, 8 Investigates calculated that, on average, Lisa and Jennifer were paying more than triple what they would have been spending without a solar subscription. By the time they canceled their contract, they had 7,232 unused credits.
After one year, those credits expire.
“So, you’re paying for electricity that you can’t even use,” said Jennifer. “If they expire, then it’s gone. You paid for it.”
“It’s a loss of money,” added Lisa. “It’s not fair to the customers.”
Using Public Utility Commission filings, 8 Investigates found that in 2023, CMP customers enrolled in community solar programs lost $2.28 million in expired credits. Seventy-three percent of those credits belonged to residential customers. Mainers like Lisa and Jennifer lost $1.67 million in one year.
“If they’re going to be allowed to come into this state and offer these things, then there should be someone to look into them,” said Jennifer.
When we reached out to Arcadia for comment, the vice president and general manager of energy services, Joel Gamoran, said, “Arcadia always intends to align subscribers with the appropriate subscription size, and we take our customers’ concerns seriously whenever we hear of any misalignment. As these instances have surfaced, we’ve worked to remedy them as quickly as possible. We have already resolved several of these issues for customers in Maine and are actively working to resolve the rest.”
Arcadia Community Solar recently went through a merger with Boston-based company Perch Energy.
8 Investigates connected Lisa and Jennifer to the Maine Office of Public Advocate, where a consumer advocate was able to work with Arcadia to save them close to $1,000 that they still owed after canceling their solar subscription.
A consumer advisor for the OPA says Arcadia has been willing to work with them to resolve similar issues for other customers as well.
If you think you may be overpaying for your subscription, check your CMP bill. On the second or third page, you can see how many credits are going unused. Then, call your solar provider and tell them you want to reduce your subscription, or you’ll have to cancel your account.
If you’re still having trouble, reach out to the OPA for help. A consumer advisor for the OPA says 38% of their consumer complaints in the last six months, have been related to solar.
If you end up choosing to cancel your account, you may be on the hook for a few months of bills following the cancellation since most solar companies are on a different billing cycle than CMP.
If you’re thinking about signing up for a solar subscription, don’t sign up without looking at a contract first and be sure to read the fine print. Many of these contracts allow the provider to increase your subscription without notice.