New England

Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports that the Trump administration has ordered the Eddystone Generating Station in Pennslvania to remain operational past the facility’s retirement date. Moreover, FERC approved a plan that allows PJM Interconnection to recover the costs of keeping the plant running. United’s Jon Gordon raised concerns about future energy capacity in the PJM region, warning that the system-wide cost sharing plan would raise electricity costs for consumers.

Canary Media reports on the recent comments by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin on a stalled natural gas project in the Northeast. United’s Jeremy McDiarmid pointed out that the narrative that natural gas will create downward pressure on consumer costs is misguided and pointed to advanced energy technologies as a better solution to reliability and affordability worries.

WBUR reports that behind-the-meter (BTM) solar played a pivotal role in combating New England’s first major heat wave of the summer as power demand soared across the region due to high air conditioning usage. United’s Jeremy McDiarmid spoke to the benefits of solar in lowering costs, reducing emissions, and relieving grid strain—impacts that will expand as installations and storage capacity increases.

Canary Media reports that Hydro‑Québec’s primary transmission line to New England ceased exporting significant amounts of power, raising concerns about energy reliability in the region. United’s Jeremy McDiarmid underscored New England’s need to diversify its energy resources and buildout more energy infrastructure to mitigate potential disruptions, increase grid reliability, and secure energy independence.

Canary Media covers the recent U.S. Department of Energy funding allocated from Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program to New England states, which will revolutionize offshore wind development. The article quotes United’s Jeremy McDiarmid, who emphasizes the importance of improving the power grid to meet the increasing load growth demands.

Anticipation builds for the latest round of offshore wind solicitation in New England

A new report from energy consulting firm Daymark Energy Advisors details both the immediate and longer-term reforms needed to ISO-NE’s antiquated interconnection process, which is threatening to derail the decarbonization goals of New England states.

In an opinion piece to CommonWealth Magazine, Advanced Energy United’s Jeremy McDiarmid and Kat Burnham stressed the importance of a robust and resilient grid. They highlighted the role that New England governors must have in building on state commitments to clean energy goals by taking a regional, holistic approach to developing the grid – focusing on community engagement and leveraging innovation with competition.