Maine could get off oil in a matter of half a decade, according to Angus King. The longtime advocate of alternative energy said the technology that could ease Maine’s oil dependence is here, now.

“I think it’s an important chance for us to really leap into a new future in terms of jobs and economic growth and become one of the energy hubs of the Northeast,” King said.

During a recent interview at his headquarters in Brunswick, Maine’s former Governor gave his opinion on natural gas in Maine, local wind farms, and why he decided to run for the senate seat vacated by Olympia Snowe. 

King, running as an Independent, said he doesn’t adhere to political partisanship. “I call them as I see them,” referring to the need to examine each issue thoroughly, and not based on what party interests it would appease. 

King opposed the Keystone pipeline, but indicated he is not an opponent of pipelines or fracking in general, as long as the proper research has been conducted and environmental regulations are in place.

When asked about the proposed local Statoil floating wind farm project, King gave an encouraging response. 

“It may be the greatest economic development opportunity that Maine has seen ever since they started building ships on the Maine coast,” he said. 

“(The Statoil wind farm) may be the greatest economic development opportunity that Maine has seen ever since they started building ships.”

If the full project is approved it would give an enormous boost to Maine’s economy, King said. 

The four-turbine project is an experiment proposed by a Statoil, a Norwegian based energy company that last October applied to the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to lease 22-square nautical miles in the Gulf of Maine. 

King admitted he’s never been a fossil fuel guy. “My whole life has been hydro, bio, conservation and wind,” King said alluding to his power saving efforts in the 1980s and involvement with Independence Wind, a company that he co-founded in 2009, but sold off part of the stakes to when he announced his senate candidacy in 2012. 

“If we can replace oil and coal with natural gas, it’s a gigantic win for the environment, because the emission level is much, much lower.” 

Natural gas, something the U.S. has in abundance, could be the future for fueling Maine. Currently Maine’s natural gas is carried to the Portland, Brunswick, and Bangor areas, and is also provided to their surrounding regions.

“We could replace oil here in Maine and we don’t even have to build a pipeline to everybody’s house,” King said, “This is my big idea.”

Gas by wire

One avenue King is eager to explore is using the existing electrical system to deliver electricity to homes by natural gas for electro-thermal storage, an older technology that consists of a housing mechanism of high-density ceramic bricks that radiates heat during different hours of the day, and conserves electricity, 

King first encountered the technology widely used in Europe in 1986, and he says that same application could be used to power electric cars and Maine houses. According to King, 75 percent of homes in Maine are still heated by oil.

King said he sees an enormous opportunity in natural gas because it would cut fuel costs and reduce oil and coal emissions. However, he wouldn’t want Maine to grow dependent on natural gas, but instead treat it as a transition fuel until renewable energy becomes a predominant resource.

Partisanship

King made it clear that he is running for U.S. Senate because he thinks partisanship is a huge part of what is ailing the nation. 

“People are making decisions on party interests, and next election interests, and money interests that aren’t necessarily consistent with what’s best for the country,” King said. “What’s good for the country seems to be about fifth on the list.” 

King decided to get back into politics after he heard Olympia Snowe’s retirement speech. He thought if she couldn’t get anything done given her assets and 34 years of seniority, “maybe we have to do it in a different way.” 

As an independent candidate, King believes he has an advantage in not having to report to a party, or be forced vote along party lines. 

“Nobody will be able to count on my vote, which means my vote will be very valuable,” he said while invoking the strategy of Maine’s great senator, Margaret Chase Smith, who was famous for never announcing her vote, until her name was called. 

“I want people to know that I’m going to make independent decisions on what I think is best for Maine, and the country.” 

Those decisions may be reached by considering strategies outside the borders of Maine. After King’s tenure in Augusta wrapped up in 2003, he hit the road with his family in a 40-foot motorhome for a six-month cross-country excursion. Along the way he said he learned many things first hand. 

“Problems that you think are unique to Maine, are in fact going on everywhere,” King said. 

Recalling his time spent in Washington State, King noticed distinct inequalities in the rural and urban economies, much like the “two-Maines” he encountered while governing. He noted that seeing the similar plights put it all into perspective. 

“You learn there may be solutions that other people are working on that have some usefulness here,” King said. “There is a tendency to think that we have to invent everything here.” 

During a nine-year hiatus from the public spotlight, King taught leadership classes at Bates and Bowdoin colleges. Through his teaching and research of world leaders, King learned the power of a group working together. That is the best way to make decisions, King said. 

The politician-turned-professor-turned-politician takes that lesson back to the campaign trail, and hopes to bring it to the state house as Maine’s next senator.

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