Curated reference and analysis. Last full review: June 17, 2026
Verify all figures against ISO sources before relying on them for project decisions.
Grid Interconnection Tracker
U.S. ISO / RTO Large-Load Positioning
← Overview
ISO / RTO Profile

ISO-NE

ISO New England · CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT
www.iso-ne.com/Last updated: 2026-06-17Tier:ChallengedConfidence:Medium
Bottom line

Fastest queue timelines in the country, but a small grid, high power costs, limited land, and almost no large-load demand pipeline make it a minor data-center market for now.

Author analysis. Review against primary sources before relying on this for project decisions.

Verified facts and placeholders

Facts
Total queue MW
14,000 MWas of 2026-06-17
Total queue projects
26as of 2026-06-17
Avg interconnection wait
3.7 yearsas of 2026-06-17
Large-load queue MW
110 MWas of 2026-06-17
Queue status
reform-in-progress
Large-load posture
Developing
Generation queue notes
~14 GW proposed in the Interconnection Request Queue (Jan 2026), nearly all grid-scale wind, solar, and battery. First-ready-first-served transitional cluster study launched Oct 2025 with 26 projects (~8 GW), mostly Massachusetts battery storage. Largest is SouthCoast Wind 1 at 1,200 MW.
Large-load posture rationale
Large-load forecast framework debuted only in the May 1, 2026 CELT Report. ISO-NE is surveying transmission owners to identify potential large loads and participating in NERC/EIPC/EPRI working groups. Far earlier in large-load planning than PJM or ERCOT.
Primary source
www.iso-ne.com/participate/applications-status-changes/interconnection-process-guide

Analyst read

Editorial analysis
Tier
Challenged
Rationale
Fastest queue timelines in the country, but a small grid, high power costs, limited land, and almost no large-load demand pipeline make it a minor data-center market for now.
What's working
  • Shortest interconnection timelines in the U.S. (~3.7 yrs).
  • New first-ready-first-served cluster process with real readiness gates.
What's working against
  • Small system (~14 GW queue), high regional power prices, and constrained land limit large-load siting.
  • Large-load planning is nascent; little firm framework for data-center-scale loads yet.
One thing to watch
Whether the new large-load forecast translates into actual data-center interconnection activity, or New England stays a secondary market.
Analyst note
For renewables and storage, ISO-NE is one of the cleaner queues to navigate. For large-load data centers it is early and constrained: high cost, limited land, and a planning framework that only just exists. Watch it as a niche/edge market rather than a primary siting target. The contrast tells the story. ISO-NE's official large-load forecast sits near 110 MW while ERCOT tracks 410 GW. New England screens demand hard and counts only what looks real, which keeps the headline number small and the development path narrow.

Major announced projects in this market

Exhibit 2 · supporting

Project signal tracking is intentionally blank in this baseline edition.

Recent reforms

Source-backed
  1. 2025-10
    First transitional cluster study

    Launched first-ready-first-served cluster study of 26 interconnection requests (~8 GW): 21 battery, 3 wind, 2 solar, mostly in Massachusetts. Adds financial and site-control requirements and withdrawal penalties.

    Source
  2. 2026-05
    Large-load forecast debut

    ISO-NE's first large-load forecast appeared in the 2026-2035 CELT Report published May 1, 2026, establishing a framework for tracking data centers and other large loads.

    Source

Upcoming milestones

Source-backed
  1. 2026-08
    Transitional cluster study completion

    First cluster study expected complete by August 6, 2026.

    Source
  2. 2026-10
    First full cluster study window

    Request window for the first full cluster study opens October 2026.

    Source

Sources & last updated

Provenance
Last updated
2026-06-17
Primary source
https://www.iso-ne.com/participate/applications-status-changes/interconnection-process-guide
Source registry