LIMESTONE, Maine — After seeing success with its own solar array installation, the Limestone Water & Sewer District is helping the town and a nearby school explore how to potentially benefit from electric savings.
In 2018, the Water & Sewer District partnered with ReVision Energy of New England to install more than 1,700 solar panels in a 3.5-acre region of the former Limestone Industrial Park on Albert Road. That project has saved the district, which is not a town department, $20,000 in annual electric costs since its inception.
Now the town hopes to partner with the Maine School of Science and Mathematics for a similar project. The committee, which consists of town and school officials, is still working out preliminary details of the project, but expects it to produce significant electric savings for everyone involved.
Chuck Kelley, chairperson of the Solar Project Committee, expects that the investment in solar could save both the town and MSSM 96 percent on each of their annual electric costs, which amount to $38,000 and $28,000, respectively.
“More people are interested [in solar] now, especially with the rising electric rates,” Kelley said. “We’re working collaboratively to see where we can have some cost savings.”
This Thursday, the town will hold a public election for residents to potentially allow the Solar Project Committee to spend no more than $475,000 on its project.
Though the committee does not expect to spend that exact amount, an approval from voters will authorize it to spend that much in case costs rise. If the proposal passes, the committee will move forward with choosing a solar partner and exploring potential grant opportunities.
Many community members and town officials expressed support for the solar project at a recent public hearing, Kelley said.
“We’re optimistic,” Kelley said. “We’ve got a strong committee and people are starting to take interest in this [project].”
