Peabody, Marblehead Municipal Clean Energy Deal Touted

PEABODY, MA — The state wholesale electric agency for 14 municipal utilities, including Peabody and Marblehead, on Tuesday touted an agreement with the operator of two Connecticut hydroelectric suppliers to provide "clean energy" to up to 6,000 homes across its network.

The Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company announced the agreement with FirstLight to purchase 69 gigawatt hours per year of power. The deal runs through 2029 and will "expand the carbon-free portion of the communities' power supply ahead of Massachusetts' mandate for municipal utilities to obtain 50 percent of their electric supply from carbon-free sources by 2030 and net zero carbon emissions by 2050," according to MMWEC.

"We're proud to announce this partnership with MMWEC and the 14 Massachusetts municipalities that will soon receive clean, reliable hydropower produced here in New England," said Peter Rider, Chief Commercial Officer at FirstLight. "MMWEC and the participating communities understand the climate risks we are facing, and through this agreement, have made bold, tangible steps to begin immediately preparing for the clean energy future ahead of us while also ensuring that the benefits of this transition remain in New England in the form of economic benefits, local union and non-union jobs, and access to beautiful recreation spaces across the region."

The 14 public power entities include the Peabody Municipal Light Plant and the Marblehead Municipal Light Department.

During the first year of the contract (2024), PMLP will utilize 7.58 percent of the 13.2 megawatts provided. During the remaining years of the contract, PMLP will utilize 5.74 percent of the 17.4 megawatts provided.

"As we all strive to achieve our decarbonization goals amid market forces that have new renewable buildouts costing millions, if not billions of dollars, it's refreshing when an existing and affordable renewable resource becomes available," said Manager Joe Anastasi of PMLP. "PMLP's partnership with MMWEC and FirstLight is a great example of how public power provides its customers with the best options to keep the lights on and the bills low."

FirstLight's Stevenson Generating Station in Monroe, Connecticut, and Bulls Bridge Generating Station in New Milford, will supply the contracted clean power to MMWEC, which in turn will provide it to the participating communities through 2029.

"We are thrilled to announce this new partnership with FirstLight and are proud to see so many MMWEC members participating — a true example of joint action and the ambition of our members in planning and preparing for the energy transition ahead of us," said MMWEC Chief Executive Officer Ron DeCurzio. "Not only will this bolster members' decarbonization efforts, but also, it will support the collective effort to provide reliable, low-cost power to ratepayers across the Commonwealth."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)