New England Residents Brace for Inflated Utility Bills as Natural Gas Prices Surge: “Rising Energy Costs Create Real Challenges”
by Kristen Lawrence Electricity costs in Maine are expected to reach record levels because of elevated natural gas prices, placing a strain on household budgets and the grid. What’s causing rising electric costs? As Maine Public reported, power bills are projected to reach a three-year high because natural gas prices for electricity generation have increased by roughly […]
2025 ISO-NE Peak Load Hour and CES Self-Help Program Recap
By Andrew Price, President & CEO There was little suspense as we waited for the Independent System Operator of New England (ISO-NE) to formally identify the annual peak load for 2025. Temperatures on June 24 hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit across much of New England and electricity demand spiked to the highest level since 2013, as […]
New England Legislative Updates: Balancing Renewable Goals with Energy Affordability
By Thea Aslanian, Energy Analyst Introduction and Background Across New England, state legislatures are rebalancing ambitious climate goals with rising concerns over energy affordability. Costs of living in the Northeast have risen 3% year-over-year as of June, with household energy costs rising almost 13%. In the first half of 2025, several states passed major reforms […]
No New England Forward Capacity Auction This Year?
By Simon Pritchard, Managing Director of Analytics As regular readers of the Competitive Energy Services Insider Newsletter may recall from past years, the March-April newsletters typically feature an update on the latest New England Forward Capacity Auction (FCA). The FCA is the process by which the New England regional grid operator, ISO New England (ISO-NE), […]
Introduction to Clean Heat Standards
By Sandy Beauregard, Director of Sustainability Services and Catherine Nisbet, Associate Manager of Analytics As states across the U.S. adopt ambitious climate goals, the Clean Heat Standard (CHS) has emerged as a vital policy tool aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the heating sector. A CHS sets performance standards that obligate utilities and fossil […]
Offshore Wind in New England
By Charlotte Del Col, Associate Manager of Analytics Offshore wind energy is a complex and often polarizing technology, but it also has incredible potential to meet renewable energy goals and has become a critical part of many renewable energy roadmaps and state renewable portfolio standards (RPS).[1] China currently has the largest number of online offshore […]
Fuel Security Update: New England and Beyond
By Max Webb, Managing Director of Pricing Analytics Back in February 2023, Larry Pignataro and I co-authored a blog titled, Fuel Security: New England’s Biggest Winter Concern, inspired by a topic that CES clients regularly ask about and one that is a constant in today’s changing energy landscape. Though winter is well behind us, the […]
Summer Weather 2024: What You Need to Know
By Max Webb, Managing Director of Pricing Analytics Just like that, summer 2024 has arrived. While the summer solstice is still a couple of weeks away, meteorological summer runs from June 1 through August 31. Already nearly half-way through the year, where does the time go? We all know how busy summers can be – […]
REVISED NEW ENGLAND ENERGY TRENDS FORECAST AND THE IMPACT ON CONSUMERS
By Keith Sampson, Senior Vice President, Energy Services In his January 2023 blog titled “New England Energy Trends in 2023: What’s on Keith Sampson’s Mind,” Keith shared his viewpoint on energy market trends for 2023. With the first quarter of the year nearly complete – and with more information at hand – Keith shares a […]
Fuel Security: New England’s Biggest Winter Concern
By Max Webb, Managing Director of Pricing and Larry Pignataro, Director of Strategic Partnerships & Senior Energy Services Advisor Max Webb and Larry Pignataro support Competitive Energy Services’ clients from two divergent, yet complementary vantage points. On a daily basis, Max seeks to understand and add meaning to complex pricing components that are important to […]