Summer 2017 Media Release

Annual Assessment Forecasts

Adequate Electricity Supplies for this Summer

(Assessment covers the City and State of New York, New England, and Eastern Canada)

The Northeast Power Coordinating Council, Inc. (NPCC) today released the results of its annual summer reliability assessment. The assessment concludes that the NPCC Region will have an adequate supply of electricity this summer, based on thousands of simulations covering a wide range of system and weather conditions.

“The overall NPCC forecast for electricity peak demand of approximately 105,300 MW, predicted to occur in July, is about 1,100 MW lower than last year’s forecast. This continues a multi-year trend of flat or declining forecast demand due to expanded participation in energy efficiency and conservation initiatives along with increased contributions from “behind-the-meter” resources, like roof-top solar,” said Edward Schwerdt, President and CEO of NPCC.

The assessment considered an array of severe system conditions including the impact of: 1) extended maintenance; 2) reductions in demand-response programs; 3) reductions in the import of power from neighboring Regions; 4) transmission constraints; and 5) extreme weather characterized by wide-spread and prolonged heat waves with high humidity and temperatures.

“NPCC’s installed capacity of approximately 158,400 MW has essentially remained the same as last year primarily due to retirements offsetting new projects. Notably, of the 2,200 MW of new capacity that has been added, more than half is from new renewable resources,” added Schwerdt.

For New York City, throughout New York State, and in Ontario, an adequate supply of electricity is forecast. However, under certain conditions, it is possible that New England would have to rely on imports from its neighbors within the NPCC Region, as well as the implementation of established operating procedures to maintain reliability.

The winter peaking Québec and the Canadian Maritime Provinces are expected to meet forecasted electricity demand by a wide margin.

A summary of the NPCC 2017 Summer Reliability Assessment is available at: www.npcc.org on the Home Page under the “Latest News” header.