Electricity Monthly Update
Regional Wholesale Markets: January 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 for markets east of the Rockies had a large range during January 2025, as the eastern part of the country experienced stretches of below average temperatures, resulting in spikes in wholesale electricity prices in these areas during the month. New York City (NYISO), Mid-Atlantic (PJM), and New England (ISONE) saw the highest wholesale electricity prices during January at $328.24/MWh, $248.81/MWh, and $235.59/MWh, respectively. All other electricity markets around the country saw their wholesale electricity prices at or near the bottom of their twelve month range during the month.
Wholesale natural gas prices at all markets across the country were at the top of their twelve month ranges. This is not unexpected as natural gas prices usually see their annual peak during the winter months in most markets. Similar to their wholesale electricity prices, New York City (NYISO), Mid-Atlantic (PJM), and New England (ISONE) had the highest wholesale natural gas prices throughout the country during January 2025, with each seeing a spike to $42.86/MMBtu, $29.51/MMBtu, and $24.09/MMBtu, respectively.
Electricity system daily peak demand
Electricity system daily peak demand varied across the country, with Southern Company and Bonneville Power Administration seeing daily demand at the top of their twelve month ranges during January 2025. California (CAISO) was on the opposite end of this spectrum, seeing daily peak demand levels closer to fifty percent of its maximum peak demand during the month. All other regions saw their daily peak demand stay in the middle of their twelve month ranges.