PORTLAND, MAINE: Acres of solar-electric panels installed near communities that use lots of power in the summer could be an alternative to a controversial and costly upgrade of the transmission system in southern and central Maine, a Portland-based energy company is asserting.

GridSolar LLC suggests erecting solar panels in 25-acre fields, initially around the midcoast and Lewiston-Auburn. The locations would coincide with areas that Central Maine Power Co. has identified as being most prone to future blackouts and reliability problems, GridSolar said.

These solar arrays wouldn't be designed to export large amounts of energy all year long, like the mega-projects coming online in California and Nevada. Rather, the Maine projects would fill in local power-supply gaps on summer days, when the sun's rays are strongest and when homes and businesses are cranking up air conditioners.

The solar electricity generated during these periods also would help lower future electric rates for... [continue via Web link]