Electricity Monthly Update
Regional Wholesale Markets: March 2025
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 electricity prices were at the lower end of their yearly range at all regional trading hubs in March 2025. Only New York City (NYISO) saw a relatively wide range in its wholesale electricity price during the month, ranging from $44/MWh to $111/MWh during March 2025. Northern California (CAISO) and the Northwest (Mid-C) saw their wholesale electricity prices at or around the lowest prices during the twelve-month period ending March 31, 2025. This occurred because this region usually has high amounts of low-cost hydroelectric generation during this time of year, resulting in reduced wholesale electricity prices during this period of time.
Wholesale natural gas prices were in fairly tight ranges across most markets in March 2025. New England (Algonquin) was the only trading hub that saw a meaningful range in wholesale natural gas prices during March, mainly due to this area of the country still experiencing cooler temperatures compared to the rest of the country. This resulted in New England wholesale natural gas prices ranging from around $2.80/MMBtu to $7.50/MMBtu during March 2025.
Electricity system daily peak demand
All parts of the country saw their electricity system daily peak demand on the lower end of their twelve-month ranges during March 2025. In particular, the Midwest (MISO), Southern Company, and California (CAISO) saw their daily peak demand at or around yearly lows during the month. This is not unusual during a shoulder month when moderate temperatures are present, resulting in reduced demand for residential heating or cooling and thus, reduced demand for electricity.