Angus King III, a Democrat running for governor, is traveling the state and talking with Mainers about energy, visiting the Mercier family on Tuesday.”It’s unbelievably expensive, and they are struggling to try and find a way to heat their homes and pay the bills,” King said.He founded Peaks Renewables, a renewable energy development company in Clinton. He said energy and housing are two of his biggest priorities. “Affordability is probably the biggest thing. And I think about it in terms of energy. We have again, it’s very cold. We have big energy bills here, but we also have some of the highest rates in the country. And we’ve got to bring those down,” King said.That’s why he’s proposing a plan to lower costs, but streamlining permitting processes. King said that will reduce the cost of new wind and solar energy. He also wants to create a more efficient grid by utilizing technology to avoid expensive upgrades, to create accountability by offering incentives and to ensure fairness to Maine families. “There are a lot of data centers that are getting built across the country. And right now, if they’re going to come to Maine, I think we have to insist that they do not add cost to Maine families,” King said.As the Central Maine Power Corridor is now online and contributing to the New England power grid, King said moving more renewable energy into New England is a good thing but, “that’s another example where Maine probably could have gotten a better deal. And again, these these big energy projects are the kinds of things that we’ve really got to pay our pay attention to. And I think Maine probably could have done better,” he said.King remains on the campaign trail but has not yet submitted signatures to get on the democratic primary ballot in June. The deadline is March 16.
Angus King III, a Democrat running for governor, is traveling the state and talking with Mainers about energy, visiting the Mercier family on Tuesday.
“It’s unbelievably expensive, and they are struggling to try and find a way to heat their homes and pay the bills,” King said.
He founded Peaks Renewables, a renewable energy development company in Clinton. He said energy and housing are two of his biggest priorities.
“Affordability is probably the biggest thing. And I think about it in terms of energy. We have again, it’s very cold. We have big energy bills here, but we also have some of the highest rates in the country. And we’ve got to bring those down,” King said.
That’s why he’s proposing a plan to lower costs, but streamlining permitting processes. King said that will reduce the cost of new wind and solar energy.
He also wants to create a more efficient grid by utilizing technology to avoid expensive upgrades, to create accountability by offering incentives and to ensure fairness to Maine families.
“There are a lot of data centers that are getting built across the country. And right now, if they’re going to come to Maine, I think we have to insist that they do not add cost to Maine families,” King said.
As the Central Maine Power Corridor is now online and contributing to the New England power grid, King said moving more renewable energy into New England is a good thing but, “that’s another example where Maine probably could have gotten a better deal. And again, these these big energy projects are the kinds of things that we’ve really got to pay our pay attention to. And I think Maine probably could have done better,” he said.
King remains on the campaign trail but has not yet submitted signatures to get on the democratic primary ballot in June. The deadline is March 16.