1.Program established.
The Northern Maine Renewable Energy Development Program, referred to in this section as "the program," is established to remove obstacles to the use of and to promote development of the substantial renewable energy resources in northern Maine. As used in this section, "northern Maine" means Aroostook County and any other area of the State in which the retail market is administered by the independent system administrator for northern Maine.
2.Request for proposals; transmission line or lines.
The commission shall issue a request for proposals for the development and construction of a transmission line or lines necessary to connect at least 1,200 megawatts of renewable energy resources located in northern Maine and developed pursuant to subsection 3 with the electric
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1.
Program established.
The Northern Maine Renewable Energy Development Program, referred to in this section as "the program," is established to remove obstacles to the use of and to promote development of the substantial renewable energy resources in northern Maine. As used in this section, "northern Maine" means Aroostook County and any other area of the State in which the retail market is administered by the independent system administrator for northern Maine.
2.
Request for proposals; transmission line or lines.
The commission shall issue a request for proposals for the development and construction of a transmission line or lines necessary to connect at least 1,200 megawatts of renewable energy resources located in northern Maine and developed pursuant to subsection 3 with the electric grid operated by the New England independent system operator, referred to in this section as "the ISO-New England system." The commission may issue preliminary requests for information from utilities and private developers or release draft requests for proposals or draft transmission services agreements to gather information to inform the program.
3.
Request for proposals; renewable energy generation projects.
The commission shall issue a request for proposals for the development and construction of qualified renewable energy generation projects in northern Maine designed to connect to and transmit generated power using the transmission line or lines to be constructed pursuant to subsection 2. The commission shall make every effort to ensure that the competitive bidding process directed by this subsection results in the approval of contracts pursuant to paragraph E. As part of the request for proposals under this subsection, the commission shall make available to potential bidders any relevant information submitted to the commission by the bidder or bidders whose proposal or proposals were approved for contracting under subsection 2. Except as provided in paragraph B, subparagraph (2), renewable energy generation projects on which construction commenced prior to July 31, 2024 are not qualified for the purposes of this subsection.
3-A.
Requests for proposals; additional generation capacity.
The commission shall issue a request for proposals for the development and construction of renewable energy generation projects in northern Maine, in addition to those selected under subsection 3, in order to maximize the utilization of the capacity of the transmission line proposal selected under subsection 2. The commission shall:
3-B.
Term sheet award; effect.
Notwithstanding any provision of law that requires a developer of a proposed transmission line or lines under subsection 2 or a renewable energy generation project under subsection 3 to demonstrate title, right or interest before a permitting agency will accept and begin processing an application for any permit or approval required for such a project, a term sheet awarded by the commission to a bidder for such a project must be considered sufficient title, right or interest for the permitting agency to accept and begin processing the application. Nothing in this subsection may be construed to except a transmission line or lines or a renewable energy generation project awarded a term sheet by the commission from any requirement for title, right or interest necessary for the issuance of such a permit or approval or to deem such requirements for title, right or interest satisfied by the award of a term sheet.
4.
Regional electric grid integration and development.
In implementing and administering the program under this section, the commission shall:
5.
Public involvement and coordination.
The commission and the Department of Environmental Protection shall ensure coordinated public notification and opportunities for public participation, including explanation of all public participation procedures, in connection with regulatory approvals and permitting under this Title and Title 38 for a transmission line or lines and renewable energy generation projects under the program.