(Host) Vermont’s largest electric utility has won regulatory approval to expand or investigate new renewable energy projects.
Central Vermont Public Service says the improvements and the studies will cost $350,000.
Several of the projects involve expanding the company’s methane power projects, which generate electricity from manure at dairy farms. Central Vermont says those farms might be able to grow algae for the methane projects.
There are also plans for hydroelectric, solar and wind projects, including a station in downtown Rutland that would produce electricity from a solar panel to charge plug-in hybrid cars.
Steve Costello is with Central Vermont.
(Costello) "We have, particularly in the last 10 years really been trying to find projects that no one else was working on, that no one else was doing anything about and putting some money into those to see what could happen."
(Host) Costello says it’s impossible to know how much electricity some of these projects could produce.
He says the projects that get electricity from cow manure started very small but now supply power for about 4,000 customers.