National Grid is an electricity and natural gas delivery company that connects ~6 million accounts to energy sources through its networks in New York and Massachusetts. National Grid also owns and operates systems that primarily deliver electricity in the United Kingdom.

National Grid serves approximately 1.7 million electricity customers and approximately 600,000 natural gas customers across upstate New York. National Grid acquired Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation (NMPC) in 2000 and still does business in New York as NMPC. As such, it is often referred to either as National Grid or Niagara Mohawk, depending on the filing or document being referenced.

SYSTEM OVERVIEW

National Grid’s service area is diverse, including urban areas in Buffalo, Syracuse, and Albany and rural areas across much of Upstate New York, covering more than 25,000 square miles. Its customer base is a mixture of residential, commercial, and industrial.

National Grid is experiencing a minor increase in energy usage along with growth in peak demand. Adjusting for the influence of distributed energy resources (DER), the peak demand is expected to remain relatively constant.

The utility intends to deploy approximately 1.7 million AMI meters and 640,000 smart gas meter modules as part of its transition to next generation smart infrastructure. National Grid launched its AMI program in 2021 and expects AMI to be deployed at full-scale by 2027.

Opportunities and Challenges

• Opportunities: New ways of using Energy Storage Solutions; Non-Wires Alternatives opportunities; electrification of transportation; electrification of heat

• Challenges: Increasing customer expectations on reliability/resiliency; affordability