CMP makes upgrades with smart meters

The chairman of Central Maine Power's corporate parent came from Europe to help celebrate the installation of "smart" meters and the start of construction of a $1.4 billion power grid upgrade that'll allow more electricity to flow from Canada and create capacity for renewable power projects.

Gov. John Baldacci was joined at back-to-back events in Gorham and Portland by Ignacio Galan, chairman and CEO of Spanish utility Iberdrola SA, as well as other dignitaries.

The power grid project, described as the biggest energy infrastructure in Maine history, will create much-needed jobs while providing overdue upgrades to ensure reliability, Baldacci said.

"There's a direct impact on Maine that will be immediate. It's going to be a real shot in the arm," Baldacci said. "We've been in the worst recession since the Depression and we haven't updated this power grid system for over 40 years. If we want to be an energy player, then we really have to have the investment."

In Gorham, the group gathered at an electric substation where construction will soon get under way in earnest in the first phase of the upgrade.

Afterward, the delegation traveled to Portland to demonstrate how the smart meters will allow customers to monitor their power consumption in real time.

The power grid upgrade is expected to sustain 2,000 construction jobs a year over the five-year project as workers install 500 miles of new and upgraded high-voltage lines, including a new 345,000-volt line from Orrington to Eliot. Also included are five power substations.

When it's completed, more electricity will flow from New Brunswick, and there'll be bulked-up capacity for additional wind power projects in Maine.

The smart meters, the first of which was installed on an apartment building in Portland, will connect to a network through wireless communication.

Right away, customers will be able to monitor their electric usage and, presumably, alter their habits to reduce consumption and lower their bills. CMP, meanwhile, will see cost savings by eliminating meter readers CMP also will be able to better monitor power outages.

Eventually, smart meters and smart grid improvements could open the door to new pricing formulas, such as dynamic pricing where rates could vary by the time of the day.

Federal stimulus grants are funding roughly half of the $200 million cost of the smart meter project. For the power grid upgrade, Iberdrola shed three natural gas utilities to help fund the project. The construction costs will eventually be recouped from New England ratepayers.

Galan credited Baldacci for pushing to make Maine a leader in renewable energy. Already, Maine is the top wind power producer in New England.

"I feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment here as this project gets under way. And it's only going to bring more and bigger opportunities to the state of Maine," said Baldacci, who along with Iberdrola executives was wearing a green tie to show a commitment to green energy.

On the same day that CMP and Iberdrola celebrated their achievements, the Maine Public Utilities Commission approved the merger of Bangor Hydro Electric and Maine Public Service, Maine's second- and third-largest electric utilities.

Eventually, CMP and the newly merged company want to complete a piece of the puzzle that's missing, a link that connects Aroostook County in northernmost Maine with the rest of the New England grid.

That project, which is under study, would create a competitive market that will benefit customers in Aroostook County while expanding capacity for more wind power projects. It also would serve as another conduit for bringing additional energy from across the border from Canada.