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Developer outlines group net‑metering offer to Canterbury, cites near‑term credits from Unitil project
Summary
PureSage Energy presented a no‑cost group net‑metering option that would assign solar generation credits to municipal Unitil accounts; company said a Concord/Unitil slot could deliver credits sooner than the Stratford/Eversource project.
Andrew Bernstein, founder and chief executive of PureSage Energy, told the Canterbury Select Board the company can provide town electricity bill credits through New Hampshire’s group net‑metering program without using town land or upfront municipal investment.
In a presentation to the Select Board, Bernstein said group net‑metering lets municipalities assign generation credits from an off‑site solar host to multiple municipal utility accounts inside the same utility zone. PureSage described the credits as “guaranteed savings” tied to project generation and the supply price, and said Canterbury would not lose the ability to choose its electricity supplier.
Bernstein showed an illustrative example assuming the town uses about 350,000 kilowatt‑hours a year. At an assumed net‑metered price near $0.106 per kWh and a 10% offset retained by the town, the presentation estimated an immediate annual credit value of roughly $3,200 to Canterbury and cumulative, zero‑risk payments of about $77,000 over 20 years.
Bernstein said interconnection costs can make or break projects and that PureSage’s portfolio and prior interconnection work leave it “ahead” of many other developers. He noted the town’s electric accounts are split between Eversource and Unitil; because the town’s municipal buildings are in Unitil territory, Bernstein said PureSage could instead slot Canterbury into a Unitil project being developed for Concord, where about 6 million kWh remains available.
Select Board members and attendees asked for more written detail and figures. Select Board members asked PureSage to provide slides and the company agreed to send a standard power purchase agreement and project information for review by the town’s energy committee. Bernstein said construction on the referenced project could start as soon as the first quarter next year and that credits could appear by the following summer, subject to interconnection studies.
The board did not take action. Members said they would route the material to the town energy committee for review and requested PureSage follow up with numbers tied to the Concord/Unitil project.
Ending — Next steps: PureSage will send the power purchase agreement and detailed slides to town staff and the energy committee; the town’s energy committee and Select Board expect to review the materials and consider whether to proceed.
