trending Market Intelligence /marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/o5hso0nvgfjfitmkvlqx-g2 content esgSubNav
In This List

ISO New England finalizes capacity auction results, rejects 2 bids to delist

Podcast

Next in Tech | Episode 49: Carbon reduction in cloud

Blog

Using ESG Analysis to Support a Sustainable Future

Research

US utility commissioners: Who they are and how they impact regulation

Blog

Q&A: Datacenters: Energy Hogs or Sustainability Helpers?


ISO New England finalizes capacity auction results, rejects 2 bids to delist

Although the 12th annual ISO New England forward capacity auction closed with enough resources to meet demand, two bids to "dynamically" delist from the market for the one-year capacity commitment period were rejected, ISO New England said in a Feb. 28 news release.

Finalized results of the auction, which include resource-specific information, have been filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and show that Exelon Generation Co. LLC sought to delist its Mystic 7, 8 and 9 generating facilities in Massachusetts.

At $4.63/kW-month, the clearing price in the latest New England capacity auction dropped 67 cents, or 12.6%, on the year to the lowest in five years due to an excess of regional capacity.

The weaker clearing price caused some existing resources to remove themselves, or delist, from the market. When a resource delists, the independent system operator conducts a reliability review to determine if the power system will maintain reliability without that resource without overloading transmission lines. If transmission will be negatively impacted, the ISO can reject a one-year delist bid and retain a resource until it is no longer needed for reliability.

According to ISO New England, a reliability review showed that transmission lines in the Greater Boston area could be overloaded if Mystic 7 and Mystic 8, totaling almost 1,300 MW, were not available during stressed system conditions in 2021 to 2022. As a result, the delist bids for those two units were rejected. The reliability review found that Mystic 9 was not needed, and it was allowed to leave the capacity market for one year.

The ISO said a total of 34,828 MW of capacity cleared in forward capacity auction 12. The auction acquired 30,011 MW of generation, including 174 MW of new generation, primarily in increased output at existing power plants. The auction also procured 514 MW of new energy-efficiency and demand-reduction measures. In all, about 3,600 MW of energy-efficiency and demand-reduction cleared in FCA 12.

In February 2017, FCA 11, which spanned the capacity commitment period of June 1, 2020, through May 31, 2021, cleared at $5.30/kW-month, down $1.73, or 24.6%, on the year. About 35,835 MW of capacity cleared in that auction.

The annual auction is held three years before each capacity commitment period to provide time for new resources to be developed. Resources clearing in the auction receive a monthly payment during the delivery year in exchange for their commitment to provide power or curtail demand when called upon by ISO New England.

For more detailed capacity market data, visit our Capacity Market Pages.