ISO-New England, the organization that operates the region’s electricity grid, may be losing a state member. New Hampshire lawmakers are trying to advance a bill that would launch a study into the benefits, cost and alternatives of electrical structures that the state could use instead.
This could cause some issues, such as major changes to how the system would work, as well as more complex policymaking. Really, what’s wrong with the electricity the state already has? Is it even worth it to tear down a working system instead of keeping the one that still works?
The ISO acts as an overseeing eye of the electrical grid, being able to monitor daily operations for the power lines. It also has a wholesale marketplace to sell the electricity, which is bought through contracts between the sellers and individual buyers, as well as in ISO’s managed markets that sell electricity products and services through bidding, according to its website.
Maine and Connecticut have looked into leaving the ISO at some point since its establishment in 1997, but both turned it down. If N.H. were to leave the ISO, it would need to have the utility companies within the state and owners of transmission lines leave the state.
Leaving the ISO grid is not a benefit. The shared market and resources ISO provides as a whole means more than just electricity. In a way, it brings the states together. When one town’s or state’s power is down, the electricity comes from another place to support it. Without this support from the region, it keeps N.H. away from having much backup in situations where places completely lose power.
States pay for the transmission system depending on how much energy the state uses. According to New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR), Massachusetts pays about 40 percent of the regional costs because of the energy they use in comparison to the other states.
The cost comes through people’s monthly electricity bill, which was estimated to be about $1.71 per the average person in 2025, according to NHPR. That totals at around $20.52 a year on average, which isn’t very expensive, all things considered. It’s about the price of seven boxes of Capri-Suns at Walmart. How much cheaper can it really get?
The N.H. lawmakers that are proposing to leave ISO-New England are looking to better the costs and benefits of what the ISO currently provides, although I don’t know how much a new system would help. I assume the power would still be in a position to give people in N.H. power as they build a new system, but that has to take a long time.
It raises the question of what other options N.H. has for electricity, and apparently, not many. The fact that N.H. will have to import fossil fuels, when the costs of that are already impacting neighboring states like Mass.and Conn., is due to the passing of many climate bills that are already increasing the prices of electric bills.
Also, ISO-New England’s wholesale marketplace could lead to higher prices, as well as in regional transmission projects. If NH is looking to save money, this is not the way to do it.
But ISO governs the electricity markets and its grid for the whole region, so its decisions aren’t always going to be in the benefit of just NH’s priority needs because of the pipeline constraints and restrictions in its policy. So, there is some logic in leaving, but at the same time, the cost has to be more than what the state is already dealing with.
The move toward the same renewable energy plans that New England states are already working on could technically decrease costs in the long run, but I’m not sure how long. 55 percent of New England’s electricity comes from fossil fuels rather than renewable energy sources, which will take a lot of new systems to replace those ones.
While leaving NH completely vulnerable in the case of a large power outage, it also provides the state with completely unnecessary costs. Yes, it provides NH with the ability to make its own decisions when it comes to electricity, but with all of the risks in place, there really isn’t a huge need for this right now.
Hayley Doda can be contacted at
hayley@kscequinox.com
