New England Grid Operator Prepared to Meet Winter Electricity Demand

ISO New England Inc. on Dec. 3 announced that the region has sufficient energy resources to meet electricity demand for the winter. The grid operator expects the region’s winter demand under normal conditions to be 20,308 megawatts (MW) and 21,089 MW under below-average temperatures. The region has a total available energy resources of just over 30,000 MW, which can cover the demand under normal winter conditions and below-average temperatures.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration projects slightly above-average temperatures for the region with normal precipitation. Last winter’s demand peaked at 18,299 MW on Jan. 17, 2024. The all-time winter peak demand is 22,818 MW, set on Jan. 15, 2004, during a cold snap.

The grid operator calculated the total available energy resources by considering the contributions from all available generation sources, and energy import capacity from neighboring regions. In 2023, New England’s energy mix consisted primarily of natural gas which contributed 55 percent of the region’s power generation, nuclear which delivered 23 percent and renewables which contributed 11 percent.

In the New England region, which faces constraints in the interstate natural gas pipeline system, the ISO’s Inventoried Energy Program, an interim program for winters 2023/24 and 2024/25, is designed to provide incremental compensation for participants that maintain inventoried energy for their assets when the system is most stressed. The Everett LNG import facility, which faced a risk of closure after the adjacent Mystic gas-fired power plant closed in May, will remain in operation after Massachusetts’ three investor-owned distribution companies signed six-year contracts through May 2030.

During times of harsh weather, it is also important to consider the region’s ability to import power from neighboring regions during unexpected power outages. The North American Reliability Corporation’s Interregional Transfer Capability Study released last month identified a maximum resource deficiency of 984 MW for the region and recommended adding 700 MW of additional transfer capability to prepare for adverse conditions.