Solar array will help power Brunswick Landing

Courtesy / Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority A 1.5 megawatt solar array designed to provide more than 13% of the electricity used at Brunswick Landing will be unveiled Tuesday.

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By Maureen Milliken

A 1.5 megawatt solar array designed to provide more than 13% of the electricity used at Brunswick Landing will be unveiled Tuesday.

The electricity from the system, which is owned by Diversified Communications of Portland and was installed by ReVision Energy, will add to what’s generated by the anaerobic digester biogas plant on the campus, producing enough sustainable energy to power nearly the entire site, according to Diversified. It will eliminate more than 2 million pounds of CO2 emissions annually.

The array, which comprises 4,500 photovoltaic panels, is the largest to date in Maine by Portland-based ReVision Energy, according to a news release.

Diversified will sell the electricity to Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, which oversees the redevelopment of the 3,200-acre Brunswick Landing, for up to 25 years or until MRRA exercises its option to buy the system. Brunswick Landing, which includes the Brunswick Executive Airport, is home to 105 companies, 32 that are new companies, according to the latest MRRA scorecard.

In addition to businesses located at the Topsham Commerce Park, MRRA’s redevelopment efforts have created 1,521 new jobs, added nearly nearly $160 million in new taxable property and led to $350 million in capital investment from both the private and public sector.

Diversified is an international company that produces exhibitions and publications such as National Fisherman and Workboat. It was looking for “new and meaningful investment opportunities” when it took on the solar farm, said Theodore Wirth, president and CEO.

“We learned of this community-based and environmentally impactful project right here in Maine,” Wirth said.

“As we continue to grow we are diversifying in ways that reflect our values instilled by our board of directors,” he said.

The company will look for opportunities to diversify through investments and acquisitions in Maine and other regions where it operates, said Oakley Dyer, Diversified’s corporate vice president of strategy and corporate development.

“ReVision Energy and MRRA have been exceptional partners as we enter into a new market and explore a new business model,” Dyer said.

Diversified and MRRA will celebrate the solar array’s completion at a ribbon-cutting 9 a.m. Tuesday at 15 Terminal Road, Brunswick Landing.

Dyer, MRRA Executive Director Steve Levesque and a representative from ReVision Energy will discuss project details. Attendees will be able to tour the project site after the ribbon-cutting.