Washington County, Maine – September 24, 2025 – The company behind Maine’s newest wind farm welcomed state and local officials, landowners, and other community members to its new operations and maintenance facility on Wednesday to celebrate the completion of the Downeast Wind project and hand-deliver the first of many community benefit agreement payments to local governments.
Apex Clean Energy completed construction on the 126-megawatt, 30-turbine wind project earlier this year, which was led by Maine-based Reed & Reed and other local contractors. The project began generating homegrown wind energy for the local electric grid in April, enough to power the annual electricity needs of 37,000 average homes.
Apex CEO Ken Young marked the occasion by presenting over $1.2 million in community benefit payments to the Town of Columbia and Washington County, the first of many annual payments that will result in nearly $20 million in new local revenue to support community priorities, including workforce training and education, environmental stewardship, public health, and emergency services.
“We are thrilled to be joined by our community partners from Columbia and Washington County to celebrate Downeast Wind and our new operations building,” said Young. “This $1.2 million represents a down payment on the long-term economic benefits that Downeast Wind will bring to the region over the next 20 years. We are grateful for your partnership and can’t want to see how this community thrives with this substantial new investment.”
Columbia Selectman Sonny Beal accepted the $435,484 payment on behalf of the town, which includes $250,000 earmarked for salt-shed infrastructure and $30,000 to support the Pleasant River Ambulance Service.
“We are proud to accept this first payment on behalf of our residents,” said Beal. “Thanks to Downeast Wind, we will be making new investments in our infrastructure, ambulance services, and other important services that benefit the entire town.”
Washington County Manager Renee Gray and Charles Rudelitch, executive director of the Sunrise County Economic Council, accepted a payment of $842,720 on behalf of Washington County. This includes $350,000 for lakeshore improvements on Schoodic Lake and additional funds for an annual scholarship for Washington County students pursuing vocational training or college degrees.
“Downeast Wind is one of the largest economic developments in Washington County’s history, and this community benefit payment is just one of several ways the project is strengthening our region,” said Rudelitch. “The project was built by Maine workers and contractors, provides six full-time operations jobs, and pays additional property taxes above and beyond what is being presented today. We welcome this investment and how it will benefit our communities over the coming decades.”
Much of the project is located in and around the county's wild blueberry barrens. David Bell of Cherryfield Foods described their partnership with Apex in ensuring the wind farm was compatible with wild blueberry harvesting.
“Integrating a grid scale wind farm with a wild blueberry farm presented unique planning challenges. We appreciate the efforts made by Apex to integrate the project with the unique aspects of nurturing wild blueberries,” said Bell. “The wind farm provides direct economic benefits to other landowners, including three small wild blueberry growers, and brings a significant renewable energy project to western Washington County, further diversifying the economy without increasing the electricity rates of local ratepayers such as Cherryfield Foods.”
A lesser-known benefit from the project’s construction were significant upgrades to the regional electric grid. Working in partnership with Versant Power, Downeast Wind funded over $50 million dollars in upgrades to the Downeast Loop transmission system, including upgrading more than three miles of transmission line and the installation of equipment that improves power quality and grid stability for the entire region.
“Today’s ribbon cutting at Downeast Wind is an outstanding achievement for Washington County and for Maine,” said Dan Burgess, Acting Commissioner of the Maine Department of Energy Resources. “I congratulate the local community and Apex Clean Energy on completing this project that will provide affordable, reliable power for Maine families and businesses, support investment and economic growth in the region, and generate significant tax revenue for the surrounding towns.”
Other notable benefits from the project include long-term investments in community organizations through Apex’s Community Grant Program, which has awarded more than $100,000 in funding to date for local nonprofits and causes, and a partnership with Project SHARE through the Apex Conservation Grant Program to enhance 1.5 miles of in-stream habitat for the endangered Atlantic salmon in riverine systems within the Downeast Wind project area.
More information about Downeast Wind can be found on the project website at downeastwindfarm.com.