Maine Exceeds Goal of 100,000 New Heat Pumps
Maine Gov. Janet Mills tours the heat-pump workforce laboratory at Kennebec Valley Community College, where she was joined by (from left) White House national climate adviser Ali Zaidi, Maine community college system president David Daigler, and Dan Burgess, director of the Governor's Energy Office. The state recently surpassed its official goal of having 100,000 new heat pumps installed by 2025.
Photo courtesy of the Office of Gov. Janet T. Mills
FAIRFIELD, Maine — The state of Maine has — well ahead of schedule — surpassed its goal of installing 100,000 new heat pumps by 2025, a milestone that represents significant progress in reducing its reliance on heating oil, lowering heating costs, and curbing harmful carbon emissions.
To continue Maine’s momentum, Gov. Janet Mills has unveiled a new target: installing another 175,000 heat pumps by 2027, thereby bringing the number of heat pumps installed in Maine homes, businesses, and public buildings during her time in office to 275,000, according to a press release from the state. If the target is achieved, Maine will have more than 320,000 heat pumps installed across the state.
Maine’s heat-pump progress stems from legislation, signed by Mills in 2019, that established the state’s heat-pump target of 100,000, enhanced heat-pump rebate incentives through Efficiency Maine, and established a low-income heat-pump program at MaineHousing. Through these programs, approximately 104,000 heat pumps have been installed.
Mills spoke about reaching the 100,000 heat-pump milestone at Kennebec Valley Community College in Fairfield, where she had unveiled the initial goal in 2019. Following that announcement, the Maine community college system expanded its heat-pump workforce programs, and has trained 558 heat pump technicians to date, including more than 250 at KVCC, which opened an all-new heat-pump workforce training lab in early 2021.
The governor was joined for the announcement by White House national climate advisor Ali Zaidi, who extended his congratulations to Mills and the state for their climate leadership.
“Our transition to heat pumps is creating good-paying jobs, curbing our reliance on fossil fuels, and cutting costs for Maine families, all while making them more comfortable in their homes — a hat trick for our state,” Mills said. “We are setting an example for the nation, and with our new and ambitious goal, we will continue to lead the way when it comes to embracing efficient, climate-friendly technologies that strengthen our economy, protect our environment, and save people money.”
“Maine is paving the way for states across the country seeking to build a clean energy future that protects our climate and creates good-paying jobs for all Americans,” said Zaidi.
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