As the state charts increasingly warm and longer summers, businesses across all industries are planning for more weather extremes.
Daniel Kool
Staff Writer
Daniel Kool is the Portland Press Herald's utilities reporter, covering electricity, gas, broadband - anything you get a bill for. He also covers the impact of tariffs on Maine and picks up the odd business story. He joined the Press Herald in 2024 as the night reporter. A graduate of Boston University, he previously covered city news, transportation and higher education for the Boston Globe. His work has also appeared in GBH News, the Boston Globe Magazine and Boston University's student newspaper, where he was the city news editor. A midwestern transplant, Daniel lives in Biddeford, where he plays with keyboards and little noise-making boxes.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Extreme drought grips parts of Maine as lengthy dry spell worsens
Rain could arrive later next week, but forecasters say it’s too soon to know yet whether it will be the wetting downpours that most of the state desperately needs.
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Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News
CMP’s new plan would increase bills — again. Mills calls that ‘unacceptable’
Though state officials say Mainers are already struggling to pay their electric bills, the utility says the distribution rate increases for hiring and resiliency upgrades would occur as some temporary charges expire, mitigating the cost to customers.
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News, Politics
Maine Republicans urge Trump administration to revoke Gulf of Maine wind leases
In a letter to federal officials, Maine Republicans applauded the termination of $600 million in offshore wind projects across the U.S. and asked for offshore leases in the Gulf of Maine to also be canceled.
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News
Central Maine Power Co. taps longtime VP as new president
Linda Ball had worked as the utility’s vice president of customer service since 2019.
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News
Is Maine approaching, or already in, a recession?
The chief economist at Moody’s Analytics included the state among nearly 2 dozen considered ‘in or at high risk’ of a recession, but the Maine state economist is pushing back and says employment is steady.
Posted inBusiness, News
Offshore wind could have saved New England ratepayers millions last winter
A recent report found that projects off Massachusetts and Rhode Island could have driven down wholesale electricity costs throughout the region if they had not been delayed.
Posted inLocal & State, New England, News
What the widespread drought could mean for Maine’s fall foliage
A state spokesperson says the weekslong dry spell affecting most of Maine could shorten the peak of leaf-peeping season and make the autumn colors less vibrant.
Posted inLocal & State, Maine Crime, News, Politics
Lawmakers request details on Child and Family Services’ interactions with family of teen accused of killing relatives in Chelsea
Sens. Jeff Timberlake, R-Androscoggin, and Brad Farrin, R-Somerset, say a ‘series of failures’ by the department appear to have led to the slayings of a father and son found dead in their Chelsea home in June.
Posted inLocal & State, Nation & World, News
ICE releases Ecuadorian man Border Patrol flew from Maine to Texas
Edgar Vicente Bermeo Sicha was released from ICE custody on Saturday, one day after a federal judge in Maine ordered the agency to do so, according to a status update filed with the court Monday.