Connecticut’s solar ambitions hit skepticism from a major utility

Connecticut is trying to add more solar power to its grid, but the state's largest electric utility keeps dragging its feet on signing the contracts needed to make that happen. Last month, Connecticut announced plans to buy 63.4 megawatts of new solar capacity from projects being built in New Hampshire and Maine. But before any of that power actually gets delivered, developers still have to negotiate final contracts with utilities — and that step has been a sticking point.

Eversource, Connecticut's biggest utility, has already put off signing contracts for 54 megawatts of solar projects chosen back in December 2025. The company says prices are too high given current uncertainty in the state's energy policy, and it doesn't want to pass steep costs on to customers' bills while that uncertainty remains. A similar large solar deal fell apart in 2024 for the same kind of reason. Eversource says talks are continuing and it hopes to finalize two of the pending contracts, but nothing is settled yet.

For homeowners, this is mostly a signal about how much renewable power actually ends up on the grid, rather than something that changes your bill right away. Connecticut has a goal of reaching 100% clean energy by 2040, and solar is supposed to be a big part of that. If utilities keep stalling on these deals, it could slow progress toward that goal and make investors wary of future Connecticut solar projects. State energy officials say they're working closely with utilities and are optimistic, but whether this latest batch of contracts gets signed remains an open question.