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Eversource explains why Connecticut bills are high and why undergrounding is costly
Summary
Eversource framed Connecticut electricity bills as driven largely by supply volatility and public benefits charges, said the utility’s distribution/transmission pieces average about $95 of a $213 residential bill, and warned full undergrounding would cost billions and require multi‑decade planning.
Steve Sullivan, president of electric operations at Eversource, told the Northwest Hills Council of Governments that Eversource is an infrastructure company that owns and operates transmission and distribution assets but does not generate electricity in Connecticut.
“We do not make any electricity … we are precluded by law from making electricity in the state of Connecticut,” Sullivan said, explaining that generation is a deregulated, competitive market and that New England’s supply mix relies heavily on natural gas, nuclear and imports.
Sullivan presented a customer bill decomposition and said the average residential bill in Connecticut is about $213 a month, while Eversource’s regulated transmission and local delivery pieces together average roughly $95. He said supply costs are the most volatile component and reflect regional market forces.
Discussing supply shocks, Sullivan cited January 2023 price spikes tied to global LNG markets after the Russia–Ukraine war and explained that pipeline constraints into New England make winter gas supplies—and therefore generator fuel costs—particularly sensitive.
On undergrounding overhead lines, Sullivan said wholesale conversion is very expensive: industry estimates cited during the meeting put the cost at about $4 million per mile of distribution undergrounding. He recommended phased, multi‑decade planning rather than a rapid systemwide conversion.
Members expressed affordability concerns. A council member noted Connecticut’s retail bills rank among the highest nationally; Sullivan said Eversource’s distribution and transmission costs are roughly average among comparable Northeastern utilities and reiterated that supply and public benefits drive much of the state’s total bill.
Sullivan also acknowledged governance and execution challenges during large storm responses and described Connecticut’s rule requiring positive customer permission for vegetation work, which limits some proactive removals and raises costs for reliability work.
Sullivan offered to share the slide deck and to continue dialogue with towns about reliability, storm response and potential long‑range investment plans.
