Assemblyman DiMaio: Even a modest energy price hike is too much for overburdened New Jerseyans
NEW JERSEY – Assembly Republican Leader John DiMaio said Tuesday’s announcement by PJM Interconnection of higher wholesale electricity capacity prices is more proof New Jersey must focus on real energy independence and affordability.
“Even a modest increase is too much when working families are already getting crushed by electric bills,” DiMaio (R-Warren) said. “We need to build more in-state energy sources that are reliable, affordable and actually lower costs for New Jerseyans.”
The new capacity price cleared at $329.17 a megawatt-day, roughly 22% higher than last year’s record-high levels. While PJM claims the increase may only raise some customers’ bills by 1.5% to 5%, DiMaio said that’s unacceptable in a state already paying some of the highest utility rates in the country.
“The Murphy administration has turned a blind eye to affordability,” DiMaio said. “It keeps pushing mandates that drive up costs while ignoring the need for reliable baseload power like natural gas and nuclear right here in New Jersey.”
The PJM auction revealed tight supply-demand margins, driven by rising demand from data centers and electrification. The cleared generation mix was 45% natural gas, 22% coal, 21% nuclear, and just 4% hydro, 3% wind, and 1% solar.
“This should be a wake-up call,” DiMaio said. “We can’t keep relying on out-of-state imports and hoping prices don’t spike. New Jersey needs to make energy affordability a priority and get serious about building power plants and pipelines again.”
