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Community-solar program presented to Pownal; company says enrolled meters would see about 15% discount
Summary
Ampion representatives presented a community solar enrollment option that they said would assign one-for-one solar credits to enrolled CMP meters and apply roughly a 15% discount to participating accounts; town administrators and selectpersons asked about billing mechanics, enrollment thresholds and consumer protections.
Representatives from Ampion described a community-solar offering to the Pownal Select Board on Jan. 12 that would let municipal meters and residents enroll to receive solar kilowatt‑hour credits assigned from Maine solar farms. Ampion’s presenter, Bryan Prudhomme, said the company’s model applies solar credits one‑for‑one to utility usage, then invoices customers for a discounted portion of the credits; Ampion said the discount is typically about 15% of the covered utility charges.
Prudhomme explained enrollment mechanics: the utility bill will list power usage, solar credits applied and any banked credits; Ampion invoices after credits are applied (the company’s invoice will lag CMP billing). He said accounts must use at least 1,600 kWh per year to enroll and contracts conservatively allow six months’ notice to cancel because of utility synchronization. The Town Administrator supplied usage figures for the town’s larger meters and Prudhomme estimated municipal savings of roughly $1,021 annually on current usage (the town’s cited commercial-meter usage was about 33,291 kWh). Board members asked about provider continuity, legislative changes and whether community credits are located in‑state; Ampion said the solar farms are in Maine and that offsets would be handled without penalty if a farm temporarily went offline.
Chair Jon Morris asked the board for time to review materials and public education before committing; Selectperson Kate Day and others said they wanted more outreach so residents could decide individually whether to enroll. Ampion offered to create a town campaign page and educational materials if the town pursues the program.
