ISO New England staff presented an overview of the regional power system to the Senate Natural Resources & Energy Committee, outlining the grid operator’s three core roles—real‑time reliability, wholesale market administration and longer‑term system planning—and describing how state clean‑energy goals and customer‑side resources affect reliability planning.

Sarah Adams, senior state policy advisor for ISO New England, told the committee the organization “operate[s] the grid and we keep it reliable 20 fourseven, 365,” and said the ISO also runs the region’s wholesale markets and produces planning studies that look at least 10 years ahead. Adams emphasized the ISO is “technology and fuel neutral” under its tariff and that it does not set retail rates, own transmission assets, issue permits or control fuel‑infrastructure such as natural‑gas pipelines.

Adams said New England has about 9,000 miles of high‑voltage transmission (primarily 115 kV and 345 kV lines) and 13 interconnections with New York and Canada. She said New England is a net importer of energy and that about 13% of the region’s energy needs were met by imports in 2024. She also outlined recent transmission investment: about $12.7 billion invested since 2002 and roughly $1.4 billion planned through 2028.

On markets, Adams explained the three wholesale components: the energy market, the forward capacity market (a three‑year forward procurement for capacity) and a smaller ancillary‑services market for voltage, reserves and similar services. She noted wholesale prices in New England are closely tied to natural‑gas prices and that the forward capacity market is the one area where the ISO procures capacity on behalf of the region. The ISO is exploring changes to the capacity market to make procurements more seasonal and more prompt.

Adams described how growing behind‑the‑meter solar and energy‑efficiency programs reduce midday demand and create more “duck‑curve” days—higher overnight and evening demand with lower midday net loads—which operators must account for in day‑ahead and real‑time forecasts. She said the ISO estimates reductions of about 11% in peak demand from those resources through 2033, and that behind‑the‑meter solar is visible to distribution utilities but not as directly to the ISO.

On electrification, Adams said the region historically shifted from a winter peaking system to a summer one in the 1990s as air‑conditioning use rose, but she said increased electrification of heating and transport could return the region to winter peaking “as early as 2035.” She gave recent historical system peaks (winter peak just under 23,000 MW in 2004; all‑time system peak about 28,000 MW in August 2006) as context for planning.

Adams invited committee members to use ISO resources and stakeholder forums, including quarterly Consumer Liaison Group meetings, and pointed them to ISO reports and an ISO mobile app for near‑real‑time price and supply information.

Adams closed by offering to be a resource to legislators as they review bills that may affect the regional grid and planning assumptions.

While committee members asked several technical follow‑ups on operations, planning and forecast inputs—particularly about how ISO incorporates state policies, behind‑the‑meter devices and EV managed charging—the ISO presentation did not result in formal committee action during the session recorded in the transcript.

Ending: The ISO briefing ran through slides on markets, interconnection and planning; Adams and committee members noted multiple further resources and follow‑up contacts for technical questions