Market Policy

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On December 30, 2025, ISO New England Inc. (ISO-NE) and the New England Power Pool Participants Committee (NEPOOL) filed proposed revisions to ISO-NE’s Transmission, Markets and Services Tariff (Tariff) to establish a prompt capacity market and deactivation framework (CAR-PD) to be implemented starting with the proposed framework’s first annual capacity auction cycle for the June 1, 2028 – May 31, 2029 capacity commitment period (2028/2029 Delivery Period). If accepted, the prompt capacity market will replace ISO-NE’s three-year Forward Capacity Market (FCM). ISO-NE requests that the Commission accept its proposed reforms, effective March 31, 2026.

On November 17, 2025, FERC accepted the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc.’s (MISO) proposed revisions to its Open Access Transmission Tariff (OATT) to modify real power testing requirements for Demand Resources. MISO specifically proposed more stringent requirements for Demand Resources seeking waiver of performing real power tests and real power tests for Demand Resources using a firm service level baseline. FERC accepted the proposed revisions as just and reasonable, finding the proposed revisions standardize testing procedures for Demand Resources.

On October 31, 2025, FERC granted ISO New England’s (ISO-NE) request for a limited waiver of its Tariff and Billing Policy to refund, approximately $68,000 in Capacity Performance charges to Brookfield White Pine Hydro LLC (Brookfield).  The waiver relates to six five-minute intervals during a June 24, 2025 Capacity Scarcity Condition in which Harris Hydro Station’s Unit 2 (Harris 2) was manually held below its EcoMax[1] because ISO-NE allowed a non-commercial Large Generating Facility to operate on a constrained transmission line, thereby limiting Harris 2’s output and triggering an underperformance assessment.

On August 29, 2025, FERC issued three orders accepting tariff revisions proposed by PacifiCorp and Portland General Electric (“PGE”) to enable both utility’s participation in the California Independent System Operator Corporation’s (“CAISO”) Extended Day-Ahead Market (“EDAM”) and accepting CAISO’s proposed tariff revisions which modify the EDAM’s allocation of congestion revenues. The three orders issued by FERC clear the way for PacifiCorp and PGE, the first two entities to file tariff revisions to participate in the EDAM, to enter the market in 2026.

On July 15, 2025, FERC initiated an investigation, pursuant to section 206 of the Federal Power Act (“FPA”), to assess whether the Western Electricity Coordinating Council’s (“WECC”) soft price cap on spot market energy sales should be eliminated. FERC preliminarily concluded that the WECC soft price cap is no longer just and reasonable because of changes in the circumstances in the WECC market, and thus proposed its elimination pending the results of the investigation. FERC requested that interested parties submit comments within 30 days of its order (i.e., by August 14, 2025). FERC expects to issue an order on the results of its investigation by December 30, 2025.

On March 27, 2025, FERC approved Southwest Power Pool, Inc.’s (SPP) tariff revisions to remove the opportunity for resources that self-commit during the Reliability Unit Commitment Process (RUC) to avoid contributing to RUC system-wide make-whole payments. In doing so, FERC found the revisions are consistent with cost causation principles.

On January 28, 2025, FERC accepted the New York Independent System Operator, Inc.’s (“NYISO”) proposed revisions to its Market Administration and Control Area Services Tariff (“Services Tariff”).  The revisions define the demand curves in the Installed Capacity (“ICAP”) Market for the 2025/2026 Capability Year and implement a quadrennial process, known as the Demand Curve reset (“DCR”), which outlines the methodologies and inputs for subsequent annual updates to the ICAP Demand Curves for the 2026/2027, 2027/2028, and 2028/2029 Capability Years.    

On September 10, 2024, FERC issued an Order denying two complaints.  The first complaint was filed on January 23, 2023 by Montana-Dakota Utilities Company (“MDU”) against Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. (“MISO”) and Southwest Power Pool, Inc. (“SPP”).  The second complaint was filed on March 8, 2024 by MISO against…

On June 27, 2024, FERC accepted Midcontinent Independent System Operator Inc.’s (“MISO”) proposed tariff revisions that sought to implement a downward-sloping Reliability Based Demand Curve (“RBDC”) in the MISO Planning Resource Auction (“Auction”) beginning with the 2025/2026 Planning Year.  FERC determined that MISO’s proposal is not only consistent with its acceptance of similar sloped curves in other Regional Transmission Owners/Independent System Operators capacity markets but that MISO’s proposal to adopt a downward-sloping RBDC will reduce volatility in Auction Clearing Prices, increase the stability of the capacity revenue stream over time, and render capacity investments less risky, thereby encouraging greater investment and at a lower financing cost.