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National Grid launches 18–24 month "IslandReady" study to assess Nantucket's aging power system
Summary
National Grid told the Nantucket Select Board it will study the island's electric infrastructure for 18–24 months to evaluate submarine cable replacement, new substation locations, distribution upgrades and non‑wires alternatives as local demand grows. Presenters said summer peak load rose from about 33 MW in 2003 to 54 MW in 2025 and projected winter peak growth through 2050.
National Grid told the Nantucket Select Board on May 20 that it has launched an IslandReady infrastructure study to assess and plan upgrades to the island's aging electric system.
Julia Kaplan, a project engagement team member at National Grid, said the study will analyze submarine cables, substations, distribution lines, generation and battery storage and will run about 18 to 24 months. "We're developing a plan that's going to balance reliability with affordability," Kaplan said at the meeting, and added that community input and public information sessions will be part of the process.
Kaplan and National Grid project staff said Nantucket's electrical demand has grown substantially in recent decades and that the island faces aging assets: the first 46 kV submarine cable (installed in 1996) has a roughly 40‑year lifespan that brings it to around 2036, and a second cable installed in 2006 reaches expected end‑of‑life around 2046. The presenters said summer peak load increased from roughly 33 megawatts in 2003 to about 54 megawatts in 2025, and winter peak rose from about 22 MW to 35 MW (2002–2024).
National Grid said it will study options that include replacing or upgrading submarine cables (including evaluating higher voltages and greater capacity), locating additional substation capacity outside downtown because downtown lies in a floodplain, distribution upgrades and non‑wires alternatives such as locally distributed solar, battery storage and other technologies to reduce the need for traditional poles and wires. "Non‑wires alternatives are part of a solution," said Daniella Ratza, project engagement manager, but "they're not going to replace needing the infrastructure to actually move the power." Ratza said engineers will work with partnering utilities and assess transmission, submarine cable and substation alignment to accept exported local generation.
Attendees pressed National Grid on specific constraints: whether the system can accept backfeed from local solar, whether the first cable loan has been paid off, and how battery and combustion turbine generation at Bunker Road operate during peak demand. National Grid said the first cable has been paid off and that the second is nearing end of its payment schedule; the company said it would provide more detailed financial timing in the study. Kaplan said the Bunker Road facility’s combustion turbines power the battery energy storage system, which is used at times of peak demand when cables are near capacity.
National Grid emphasized it will prioritize cost and sequencing concerns raised by residents: "That is probably your number‑one concern and the community's number‑one concern as well," Kaplan said, noting the company recognizes community worry about the cost of potential new cables or other upgrades.
The company said it will provide periodic updates, hold public information sessions on island and offer multiple channels (hotline, email, website) for public feedback as the study progresses.
