Seneca Mountain Wind is stopping development of a project that would have placed about 20 turbines at a remote mountaintop site in the Northeast Kingdom. The company has withdrawn its electrical connection request with ISO New England and terminated land leases in Newark, Brighton and Ferdinand.
According to a press release late Friday afternoon, “SMW’s decision reflects its commitment to obtain community support before advancing this project, which was not evident in any of the three jurisdictions where SMW had development plans.”
The company had put the project on hold in May, when it became evident that the price of upgrading the transmission lines connecting to the grid from the remote location could be as high as $86 million.
Project opponents rejoiced. However, Friday’s announcement also states that the parent company, Eolian Renewable Energy, “remains hopeful that Vermonters will work diligently to achieve the state’s goal of generating 90 percent of its energy from renewable resources by 2050 and Eolian will continue to seek opportunities to be an integral part of implementing this positive change.”
