Montreal: Hydro-Québec and Central Maine Power Company jointly announced the successful conclusion June 14 of contract negotiations with the Massachusetts electric distribution companies for the New England Clean Energy Connect (“NECEC”) 100 percent hydropower project. The Massachusetts companies will next file the agreements with the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, pursuant to the Massachusetts 83D Clean Energy Request for Proposals.
“We have made important progress with regard to this ground-breaking 20-year agreement, moving us closer towards decarbonization in the Northeast,” said Éric Martel, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hydro-Québec. “In the coming months we’ll be working closely with Central Maine Power to complete this important new interconnection project, which will not only reduce carbon emissions, but will also bring price stability and supply reliability to the region.”
The contracts with the Massachusetts distributors provide for the delivery of approximately 9.45 terawatt hours annually of reliable low-emission baseload power, for twenty years. The energy will be supplied by Hydro-Québec’s vast hydropower generating fleet, which means greater reliability and less reliance on fossil fuels during extreme winter weather conditions.