Electricity Monthly Update - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

The United States has many regional wholesale electricity markets. Below we look at monthly and annual ranges of on-peak, daily wholesale prices at selected pricing locations and daily peak demand for selected electricity systems in the Nation. The range of daily prices and demand data is shown for the report month and for the year ending with the report month.

Prices and demand are shown for six Regional Transmission Operator (RTO) markets: ISO New England (ISO-NE), New York ISO (NYISO), PJM Interconnection (PJM), Midwest ISO (MISO), Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT),and two locations in the California ISO (CAISO). Also shown are wholesale prices at trading hubs in Louisiana (into Entergy), Southwest (Palo Verde) and Northwest (Mid-Columbia). In addition to the RTO systems, peak demand is also shown for the Southern Company, Progress Florida, and the Bonneville Power Authority (BPA). Refer to the map tabs for the locations of the electricity and natural gas pricing hubs and the electric systems for which peak demand ranges are shown.

In the second tab immediately below, we show monthly and annual ranges of on-peak, daily wholesale natural gas prices at selected pricing locations in the United States. The range of daily natural gas prices is shown for the same month and year as the electricity price range chart. Wholesale electricity prices are closely tied to wholesale natural gas prices in all but the center of the country. Therefore, one can often explain current wholesale electricity prices by looking at what is happening with natural gas prices.

Wholesale prices

Wholesale daily electricity and natural gas prices remained elevated in July due to high commodity and fuel costs and very hot weather across most of the country. Wholesale electricity prices set new 12-month highs in New England (ISONE), which hit $257/MWh on July 21, in Louisiana (into Entergy), which reached $128/MWh on July 21, and in Texas (ERCOT), where prices hit $278/MWh on July 13. Every selected trading hub had at least one day over $100/MWh during July. Wholesale natural gas prices set a new 12-month high of $9.46/MMBtu in Louisiana (Henry Hub) and neared 12-month highs at most other locations. High prices reached a winter-like $29.35/MMBtu in New England (Algonquin), which typically does not see such elevated prices outside of the peak demand winter season.

Electricity system daily peak demand

Electricity system daily peak demand was very high across the country as temperatures were significantly above-normal from coast to coast. The Upper Midwest was the only part of the country that did not have significantly above-normal temperatures for the month (though average temperatures were still above normal in that part of the country). New York State (NYISO) recorded a new 12-month high daily peak demand of 30,505 MW on July 20. In Texas, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which represents approximately 90 percent of the state’s electric demand, set a new all-time record of 79,830 MW on July 20. This was the 11th time this summer that ERCOT set a new all-time peak demand record. Temperatures have been scorching across Texas this summer, with the state recording its all-time highest average temperature level in July, with major metropolitan areas such as Houston recording their hottest July on record