Press Releases

On Tuesday, Maine Governor Janet Mills and Maine First District Congresswoman Chellie Pingree joined Efficiency Maine Executive Director Michael Stoddard and Mariana Casagranda, a manufactured homeowner, to celebrate a $10 million Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investment to accelerate clean energy deployment in rural Maine. Efficiency Maine’s Whole-Home Heat Pump Solutions for Mobile/Manufactured Homes project plans to install 675 whole-home ducted heat pumps in mobile and manufactured homes in over 350 rural Maine communities. Each heat pump conversion in this project is projected to reduce household heating costs by 40%, while also providing central air conditioning.

Pingree, Mills, Stoddard, and Casagranda held a press conference at F.W. Webb Company, followed by a tour of ReVision Energy facilities, in South Portland on Tuesday to highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s latest efforts to accelerate clean energy deployment in rural and remote communities across Maine.

“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s historic clean energy investments are helping build a brighter, cleaner, and more affordable future,” said Congresswoman Pingree, ranking member of the House Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee. “Maine households rely on fuel oil more than anywhere else in the country, and with how volatile heating oil pricing is, making the switch to heat pumps means huge energy savings for households. Thanks to this significant investment for Efficiency Maine, hundreds of rural Maine communities will not only see lower energy costs but will be part of the clean energy revolution—helping fight climate change and achieving carbon neutrality in Maine by 2045.”

“Heat pumps are transforming the way Maine people heat and cool their homes,” said Governor Mills. “Our nation-leading transition to heat pumps is creating good-paying jobs, curbing our reliance on expensive and harmful fossil fuels, and cutting costs for Maine families. With this new funding for a pioneering program, we will continue our effort to help folks across Maine, particularly those in rural Maine, stay comfortable and safe in their homes and save them money in the process. I thank the Biden Administration this funding and for its support of our work to expand the use of heat pumps to lower energy costs, strengthen our economy, and protect our environment.”

The federal funding for Efficiency Maine is among 17 projects across 20 states and 30 Tribal Nations announced by DOE today, totaling $366 million. This funding—made possible by the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—will support a variety of community-driven energy projects in rural and remote regions, such as building microgrids for community health centers to ensure electricity for critical life-saving equipment or constructing a new hydroelectric facility on Tribal lands to improve access to reliable, affordable energy. Today’s announcement underscores the Biden-Harris Administration’s deep commitment to building an inclusive and equitable clean energy future that creates safer, more resilient communities, enhances Tribal energy sovereignty, strengthens energy security, and delivers new economic opportunities in every pocket of the nation.  

“President Biden firmly believes that every community should benefit from the nation’s historic transition to a clean energy future, especially those in rural and remote areas,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Thanks to the President's Investing in America agenda, DOE is helping revitalize communities across America—ensuring thriving businesses, reliable access to clean energy, and exciting new economic opportunities, now and for generations to come." 

Learn more about the 17 projects selected for award negotiation here. 

Background:

Efficiency Maine’s project aims to decrease energy costs and increase reliability by installing 675 whole-home ducted heat pumps in manufactured, also known as mobile, homes in rural Maine communities. Maine is one of the most rural states in the nation and lacks natural gas infrastructure. With the low availability of natural gas, Maine households rely on fuel oil more than anywhere else in the country, exposing communities to elevated levels of criteria air pollutants. Over 71% of households in Maine heat their homes with delivered fuel compared to the U.S. average of 9%. Delivered fuels, particularly kerosene, experience significant price volatility, exacerbating household energy burdens across the state. To alleviate this burden, each heat pump conversion in this project is projected to reduce household heating costs by 40%, while also providing central air conditioning. This project aims to help meet Maine’s ambitious heat pump goals, including 15,000 in low-income homes by 2025 and 275,000 homes with whole-home heat pump systems by 2027. 

As part of its Community Benefits Plan, it is anticipated that all households receiving electric heat pumps are recognized as disadvantaged and priority populations by the Maine Climate Council’s Equity Subcommittee. To ensure that rural and remote communities receive these benefits, Efficiency Maine plans to employ targeted strategies such as mailers, door to door visits, community events, trade and home shows, and collaboration with Community Action Agencies. Additionally, Efficiency Maine aims to catalyze the local clean energy workforce by providing training and certificates for heat pump contractors through publicly available and free online resources, and by connecting them to local community colleges and labor unions.

This award follows a successful pilot program by Efficiency Maine to transition residents of mobile and manufactured homes to heat pumps, which helped homeowners lower their energy expenses, increase the comfort of their homes throughout the year, and curb greenhouse gas emissions. Maine is a national leader in heat pump adoption, surpassing Governor Mills’ goal of installing 100,000 heat pumps by 2025 two years early, and setting a new goal of 175,000 additional heat pumps by 2027, for a total of 275,000. 

Maine’s success in installing heat pumps has earned wide recognition for how the high-efficiency heating and cooling technology works well in rural areas with cold climates and can generate economic and workforce opportunities for Maine people – which has contributed to Maine having the fastest growing clean energy economy in New England.

To date, more than $2.1 billion from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has been awarded to more than 300 specific projects in Maine.

The projects announced today are part of DOE’s Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas (ERA) program, which is managed by the DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED). The ERA program leverages DOE’s expertise in resilient energy solutions while recognizing the unique environmental, cultural, and economic landscapes of rural and remote communities. The selected projects cover a range of clean energy technologies, from solar, battery storage systems and microgrids to hydropower, heat pumps, biomass, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. 

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