Maine utility regulators have dismissed a solar company's bid to become a transmission utility.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission has dismissed a petition filed by GridSolar LLC to become an electric transmission utility, saying the Portland-based company is a generation facility and not a transmission and distribution facility, according to a press release from the PUC. Maine's electricity regulations state that generation and delivery of electricity are separate, and the PUC regulates only transmission and delivery companies.

Commission chair Sharon Reishus said the decision "is not a judgment on the merits of commercial-scale solar [or] the GridSolar project in particular." GridSolar is proposing installing hundreds of acres of solar panels across the state as a rival proposal to Central Maine Power Co.'s $1.5 billion transmission line upgrade.