U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and energy officials from islands throughout New England will highlight a Portland-area conference this week.
The Island Institute, a nonprofit based in Rockland, will host its annual Island Energy Conference on April 27-28.
The keynote speaker will be Tetsunari Iida, executive director of the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies. Collins will offer the welcoming address.
Participants will include leaders of energy companies from the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, in Massachusetts, and leaders from year-round islands in Maine. In all, 150 island leaders and energy experts from the United States, Japan and Denmark are expected.
The conference will highlight how higher costs have forced New England’s islands to look at clean, sustainable energy.
A networking event will be held April 27, from 5-7 p.m., at Rising Tide Brewing Co., at 103 Fox St. in Portland.
The bulk of the conference will be April 28, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at Congregation Bet Ha’am, 81 Westbrook St., South Portland.
