ISO New England tells committee queue reforms cut speculative projects; transmission RFPs, capacity market changes forthcoming
Loading...
Summary
ISO New England briefed the committee on interconnection queue reforms (shift to cluster studies, higher entry requirements) that reduced the queue from ~37,000 MW to ~14,000 MW, a regional LTTP RFP to access resources in northern Maine, and proposed capacity‑market changes including a prompt auction and seasonal auctions.
ISO New England representatives told the Science, Technology and Energy Committee that recent FERC‑driven reforms to the interconnection process — moving from first‑come, first‑served to a cluster model and raising entry requirements — have substantially reduced speculative projects in the queue and improved study efficiency.
Eric Johnson, ISO executive director for external affairs, said the region’s queue fell from roughly 37,000 megawatts to about 14,000 megawatts after the reforms. He explained the new cluster approach groups projects for joint study and raises barriers to entry (including larger deposit/fee requirements and more complete technical submissions) so that only projects with a higher probability of build‑out are studied. Johnson said the threshold that typically triggers ISO interconnection jurisdiction is 5 MW; developers often keep projects under that limit to remain in state‑jurisdiction queues.
ISO staff described a regional LTTP (longer‑term transmission planning) RFP issued to identify solutions that would access resource potential in northern Maine (targeting ~1,200 MW) and move energy into southern New England. Bidders submitted proposals in a range of engineering approaches and estimated costs from ~$1 billion to ~$4 billion with target in‑service dates in the 2035 timeframe; ISO is evaluating proposals and expected to report after thorough engineering review.
ISO also explained proposed market changes: a 'prompt' capacity auction (shorter lead time between the auction and the commitment date) is being pursued to reduce phantom capacity and better align auctions with firm, commercial resources; additional design work is under way on a seasonal capacity market (separate summer/winter auctions) to accommodate resources that deliver reliably in some seasons but not others. Johnson warned the committee that the recent federal pause and stop‑work orders on offshore wind projects (Revolution, Vineyard Wind) complicate planning because the ISO had been counting those resources in future reliability scenarios.
Committee members asked technical questions about cluster size and readiness criteria, the 5‑MW threshold, interconnection fees and how higher entry requirements affect smaller or municipal projects. ISO staff said entry fees and higher data requirements are one filter to discourage speculative queue filings, and that cluster cost allocation assigns a share of transmission upgrade costs to projects in the cluster rather than burdening the first developer alone.
What’s next: ISO plans to continue outreach to state officials, publish LTTP evaluations later in the year, and pursue FERC approvals for market design changes that move the capacity market toward prompt and seasonal structures.
