Summit takes heat for marketing contractor
Summit Natural Gas of Maine is taking heat from Cumberland officials and residents who are wondering why the utility promoted a Howland contractor that abruptly closed last week.
The Portland Press Herald reported that Summit is facing questions about its connection to Howland-based Dave Ireland Builders after the contractor abruptly closed last week, leaving dozens of customers in Yarmouth, Cumberland and Falmouth without natural gas heating systems they had made advance payments on. The deposits ranged from $1,500 to $3,000.
Summit had previously referred customers to Dave Ireland Builders, in some cases as the only contractor available in the area for converting them to cost-efficient fuel. Summit’s logo also appeared in a promotional flier next to the contractor’s name, with the phrase “Your partners in energy efficiency” above. Now Summit is distancing itself from the contractor.
Mike Duguay, Summit’s director of business development, said customers who didn’t receive services from the contractor should call Summit’s Augusta office, adding that Summit “will provide a variety of resources to them.” He did not explain why his company had been promoting Dave Ireland Builders or whether his company knew about the contractor’s financial difficulties.
Natural gas suppliers are allowed under the state’s utility regulations to promote contractors they deem viable, according to the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
Cumberland residents and Cumberland Town Manager William Shane questioned Summit’s business relationship with the contractor at the meeting. “Right from day one, your sales staff was directing people to [Ireland],” Shane told Duguay.
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