The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities released Order 20-80 on Wednesday 12/6 concerning the regulation of gas utilities in Massachusetts. The order established that gas utilities must demonstrate that they have considered “non-gas alternatives” before they will be allowed to recover costs from new gas infrastructure from ratepayers. The DPU lists “electrification, networked geothermal, and targeted energy efficiency” as examples of alternatives that must be taken into account. The Order also requires that each LDC in Massachusetts create a pilot program for “targeted electrification” – meaning that 90 percent of all buildings within a specific target area will use electricity for space heating and appliances.
Increasing pressure to dissuade utilities from expanding their natural gas distribution systems will have a negative impact on the effort to save the Everett LNG import facility, detailed in the blog Cold As Ice last week. Constellation Energy is negotiating to find a buyer for imported natural gas once the Mystic power plant shuts down next year, but a constrained Residential and Commercial market limits the appeal of such a deal to potential counterparties.
