Curated reference and analysis. Last full review: July 9, 2026
Verify all figures against ISO sources before relying on them for project decisions.
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ISO-NE

ISO New England · CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT
www.iso-ne.com/Last updated: 2026-07-09Tier:ChallengedConfidence:MediumFERC · Show-cause: active (EL26-72)

Docket EL26-72. FERC found ISO-NE has no express large-load interconnection or transmission service provisions. Concern flagged as less urgent than other regions but still ordered justify-or-reform. Show-cause response due Aug 17, 2026 (or Nov 15 with abeyance).

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 MWstale · as of 2026-06-22
Total queue projects
26as of 2026-07-09
Avg interconnection wait
3.7 yearsstale · as of 2026-06-22
Large-load queue MW
110 MWas of 2026-07-09
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 in the 2026 CELT Report (published May 1, 2026), built from transmission-owner surveys with proposals derated by development maturity. Current pipeline is small by national standards: only a couple hundred MW of large loads in the formal study phase, headlined by a 200 MW data center in the NEMA (Greater Boston) load zone with a timeline through 2027. New England has not seen the proposal wave hitting PJM, ERCOT, or MISO.
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
New England is the only market of the seven writing its large-load rulebook before the wave arrives. The queue is quiet, the CELT forecast just gained a large-load line, and the FERC order forces the pen. A developer who engages the region now negotiates with a grid operator that has capacity headroom and no backlog. Watch whether the show-cause response creates a formal study track. The contrast tells the story: ISO-NE's official large-load forecast sits near 110 MW while ERCOT tracks 238.6 GW.

Major announced projects in this market

Exhibit 2 · supporting

Project signal tracking is intentionally blank in this baseline edition.

Recent reforms

Source-backed
  1. 2026-05
    2026 CELT Report — first large-load forecast

    The 2026 CELT Report (published May 1, 2026) debuted ISO-NE's first-ever large load forecast component, built from transmission-owner surveys with proposals derated by development maturity. (ISO Newswire, May 2026.)

    Source
  2. 2026-03
    Capacity Auction Reforms — Phase 1 accepted

    FERC accepted Phase 1 of ISO-NE's Capacity Auction Reforms on March 31, 2026: auctions move from three years forward to roughly one month before delivery, starting 2028. Resources must be operational to sell capacity, ending phantom entry. Phase 2 (separate summer/winter auctions plus accreditation reform) expected at FERC by end of 2026.

    Source
  3. 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

Upcoming milestones

Source-backed
  1. 2026-08-17
    Show-cause response due (EL26-72)

    ISO-NE must justify or reform its large-load tariff by August 17, 2026 (Nov 15 with abeyance).

    Source
  2. 2026-08-06
    Transitional cluster study completion

    First cluster study expected complete by August 6, 2026.

    Source
  3. 2026-09-24
    Consumer Liaison Group — Portland, ME

    CLG meets Sept 24 in Portland, Maine (storage focus). The June 2 CLG meeting in Lowell, Mass. was the region's first major public forum on data center growth.

    Source
  4. 2026-10
    First full cluster study window

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

    Source
  5. 2026-12
    Capacity Auction Reforms — Phase 2

    Phase 2 (separate summer/winter auctions plus accreditation reform) expected at FERC by the end of 2026.

    Source

Sources & last updated

Provenance
Last updated
2026-07-09
Primary source
https://www.iso-ne.com/participate/applications-status-changes/interconnection-process-guide
Source registry