FCAs (Forward Capacity Auctions) are held each year approximately three years before the capacity resources must provide service. That delivery period is called the capacity commitment period (CCP). Capacity resources compete in the annual FCA to obtain a commitment to supply capacity in three years. This commitment is called a capacity supply obligation (CSO). Suppliers with the lowest-priced offers clear the auction and receive capacity payments based on the auction clearing price. These payments are in addition to what resources receive in the energy and reserve markets. In exchange for capacity payments, the resources have an obligation to be ready to run when called on.
In ESAI’s latest Capacity Watch report, we analyze ISO-NE FCA18, Forward Capacity Auction. ESAI’s coverage includes auction parameters, qualified capacity, and expected auction dynamics. These are all detailed in our Capacity Watch report.
In this blog, we highlight a portion of the analysis in the NYISO section of the recently published Q2 Capacity Watch™. Changes to the New York markets’ supply and demand levels and declining peak load forecasts have sent capacity prices in all directions. New York’s commitment to renewable development has increased considerably in the past year with the approval of CLCPA’s minimum statewide goal of 9 GW of offshore wind by 2035. The upward trajectory of renewables has also shaped LCR and IRM expectations.
Our Q1 Capacity Watch™ provides clients with an in-depth outlook on PJM, ISO-New England and NYISO Capacity prices. For ISO New England, we review the results for the Fifteenth Forward Capacity Auction (FCA15) recently conducted by ISO New England. In PJM, parameters have been released for the 2022/23 BRA, scheduled for May 2021. With a lower forecasted peak load, auction clearing prices are expected to decline in all PJM locations. In New York, the 2021 Summer Capability Period will begin in May.
Our Q1 issue of Capacity WatchTM came out this week. In this issue, we’re covering results from ISO-New England FCA15 and an outlook for FCA16. In PJM we’re forecasting the BRA clearing prices expected in the upcoming capacity auction. For NYISO, due to a lower forecasted peak load and a drop in the Locational Capacity Requirement (LCR), prices are expected to decline substantially for New York City.
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ESAI Power is a market research and consulting firm that delivers focused analysis of the wholesale power markets in the Northeast region of the US: PJM, NYISO, and ISO-NE. Since 2001, ESAI has been providing market-focused research product content and custom consulting services for Northeast power market participants including investors (banks, private equity, & hedge funds) & developers, generation owners & operators, utilities & retail electricity suppliers, regulators & RTOs, traders, and end-users & buyers.