Odds are you've gotten a flyer in the mail from solar farm developers, promising to save you money on your power bill.
Laraine asked the CBS13 I-Team:
“I would like to know if joining a solar farm will reduce my electric bill? If so, how do you get info to determine what solar farms are the best and/or legit?”
The CBS13 I-Team brought that question to Maine’s public advocate, Bill Harwood.
“Yes, the answer is unless something goes terribly wrong, it should lower your electricity costs. There’s a caveat there that the solar farm has to be constructed and start commercial operation for you to receive the benefits and that isn’t always a foregone conclusion,” Harwood said.
Harwood says more than 750 of these projects are under development in Maine with a small percentage of those actually in commercial use, though more are coming online every month.
In the simplest terms, if you subscribe to a local solar farm, that farm feeds power into the grid, and you get credits that reduce your electric bill.
It's a private contract between you and the developer, so Harwood says you should try to negotiate the best rate.
“How could somebody go about finding out if one of these is legitimate and if it’s going to be a good move for them?” CBS13 I-Team reporter Marissa Bodnar asked Harwood.
“Well, I think first thing is do a little homework on the solar developer. Check and see if they’ve got other projects they developed, other projects in Maine that they’ve completed, that would be a good indicator that they’re a reliable developer,” Harwood responded.
You can also go to the Maine Public Utilities Commission's website to verify a company's registration.
Harwood says community solar is still in the very early stages. He says consumers should make sure not to oversubscribe, because credits expire after 12 months.
“If you can’t use it, it expires, but you still owe the solar developer because they did their part,” Harwood said.
Bottom line is you want to read the fine print before you sign any contract.
The Office of the Public Advocate has more information, including a list of questions you should ask a developer.