MAINE PUBLIC • December 14, 2022
A nonprofit on Mount Desert Island has created a new initiative to make solar energy affordable for all local residents. Johannah Blackman, executive director of A Climate to Thrive, says the new co-op model is not a subscription plan, nor do customers have to install their own solar panels. Instead, the solar array is purchased by a tax equity investor, and members of the cooperative pay in for 5-7 years to buy it back. But once they've done so, the ownership flips into the hands of the co-op, allowing the homeowners to get 50% off their monthly energy bills through ownership.