Unitil’s new solar array in Kingston is the first to be owned and operated by a regulated distribution utility in New Hampshire.
The 4.9-megawatt solar farm generates enough electricity to power about 1,200 homes. The array is the largest in the state.
New Hampshire law doesn’t allow utility companies to own generation facilities. But an exception is given for renewable energy projects so long as the energy generated stays below the utility’s electric load peak capacity.
The reason is because those projects help make energy distribution more efficient, lowering costs for consumers, explained Alec O’Meara, director of external affairs at Unitil.
The idea is “having energy more localized and closer to where the people who will ultimately use that energy reside,” O’Meara said. “And when you do that, it lowers the cost of transporting that energy across state lines.”
According to O’Meara, the Kingston site was picked due to its closeness to an existing Unitil substation. Substations transform energy circulating through a particular grid into voltages that can then be used by residents.
“For us to be able to build this solar array right next to one of those substations effectively allows us to plug it in … directly into our distribution system so that our customers can benefit directly from that energy,” O’Meara said.
The project, which first broke ground in 2024, is a partnership with ReVision Energy, a regional solar company.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for later Wednesday.
