This, in a part of the country where individual families and businesses have paid more than other parts of the country for electricity in winter months because of
inadequate natural gas pipeline capacity.
Though included in some earlier versions, the final bill left out a provision that would have barred the state's electric distribution utilities from signing long - term contracts
for natural gas pipeline capacity.
At the time, the Environmental Defense Fund was spreading allegations about how utilities in New England had engaged in the improper withholding use
of natural gas pipeline capacity in order to drive up gas and / or power prices in the region.
No evidence exists that New England local gas distribution companies engaged in practices to
withhold natural gas pipeline capacity on the Algonquin system to drive up gas or power prices in the region, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) staff revealed.
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruled against electric utilities signing 20 - year contracts
for natural gas pipeline capacity, selling that capacity to power plants and passing the costs to their retail customers.
Three years ago Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker proposed an energy policy consisting of 1,200 megawatts of renewable energy, 1,600 megawatts of offshore wind, and an expansion of
natural gas pipeline capacity.
The generation and transmission adequacy analyses assess how much new generation, electric transmission, and
natural gas pipeline capacity would be needed to meet EPA's 2030 goals and how long it would likely take to build them.