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RI — Power Infrastructure Updated 2026-01-08

Rhode Island

ISO-NE Natural Gas Wind Storage Queue Bottlenecks

Overview

Rhode Island’s power expansion is driven almost entirely by offshore wind. Revolution Wind, a 704 MW project under construction in federal waters, will deliver 400 MW to Rhode Island and 304 MW to Connecticut under utility contracts. The Davisville substation in Washington County is the state’s key interconnection point, handling both the wind project and a planned 205 MW battery storage facility.

Generation Projects

Natural Gas

Ocean State Power is planning a modest uprate at its existing facility.

  • Ocean State Power uprate: A 73 MW capacity increase tied to National Grid’s 345 kV Sherman Road switchyard, listed as Active in ISO-NE’s interconnection queue as of January 2026.[1]

Wind

Revolution Wind dominates Rhode Island’s near-term generation pipeline.

  • Revolution Wind offshore wind: A 704 MW offshore wind project in federal waters south of Rhode Island, now in construction. Rhode Island will receive 400 MW under a long-term utility contract, with the remainder going to Connecticut.[2][3]
  • Revolution Wind interconnection: The project connects to the Davisville 115 kV substation in Washington County, forming the state’s primary new generation pathway.[1]

Transmission and Grid

Rhode Island’s transmission work is focused on connecting offshore wind to the onshore grid.

  • Revolution Wind export cable: The project’s onshore grid connection lands at the Davisville substation, which is the listed point of interconnection in ISO-NE’s queue for the 704 MW project.[1][2]
  • SouthCoast Wind transmission line: SouthCoast Wind’s export cable and onshore transmission facilities in Portsmouth are under review at the Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board (Docket SB-2022-02), with hearings and filings continuing through 2025.[4]

Battery Storage

A single large-scale battery project is planned near the Davisville hub.

  • Quonset Business Park BESS: The Quonset Development Corporation filed for a declaratory ruling on a 200+ MW battery energy storage system at the Quonset Business Park. The project would interconnect to Rhode Island Energy’s L190-2 transmission line near the Davisville 115 kV substation.[5]
  • Davisville battery (ISO-NE queue): ISO-NE’s queue lists an active 205 MW battery storage project interconnecting to the L190-2 line, close to the Davisville and Old Baptist substations.[1]

Interconnection Queue

Rhode Island’s interconnection queue is small and marked by heavy withdrawals.

  • Small active queue: ISO-NE’s public queue lists 123 Rhode Island entries as of January 2026. Only four are Active, including Revolution Wind (704 MW), Ocean State Power’s uprate (73 MW), and a 205 MW battery project. 96 entries are marked Withdrawn.[1]
  • Davisville is the bottleneck: The active wind and battery projects both tie to Davisville-area transmission, making it the main constraint for new supply serving Rhode Island load growth.[1]
  • Long study timelines: ISO-NE’s interconnection process moves through feasibility and system impact studies, with requests tracked as Active or Withdrawn — a dynamic that shapes timelines for new supply in Rhode Island.[6]

What to Watch

  • Revolution Wind’s commercial operation date — the 704 MW project is the state’s largest near-term supply addition.
  • Quonset BESS approval and timeline — the 205 MW battery project could help balance intermittent offshore wind.
  • SouthCoast Wind’s siting approval — the Portsmouth transmission route is still under regulatory review.

Sources

[1] ISO New England, “Interconnection Request Tracking Tool (IRTT) Public Queue,” https://irtt.iso-ne.com/reports/external (accessed 2026-01-08).

[2] Revolution Wind, “Renewable offshore wind for Rhode Island and Connecticut,” https://www.revolution-wind.com/ (accessed 2026-01-08).

[3] Ørsted, “Ørsted ceases development of its US offshore wind projects Ocean Wind 1 and 2, takes final investment decision on Revolution Wind, and recognises DKK 28.4 billion impairments,” 2023-10-31, https://orsted.com/en/company-announcement-list/2023/10/oersted-ceases-development-of-its-us-offshore-wind-73751 (accessed 2026-01-08).

[4] Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission, Energy Facility Siting Board, “Docket No. SB-2022-02 – SouthCoast Wind Energy, LLC Application for a License to Construct Major Energy Facilities, Portsmouth RI,” https://ripuc.ri.gov/Docket-SB-2022-02 (accessed 2026-01-08).

[5] Quonset Development Corporation, “Petition of Quonset Development Corporation for a Jurisdictional Declaratory Judgment” (Docket No. SB-2024-01), 2024-04-17, https://ripuc.ri.gov/sites/g/files/xkgbur841/files/2024-04/SB-2401-QuonsetPt-DJPetition_4-17-24.PDF (accessed 2026-01-08).

[6] ISO New England, “Interconnection Request Tracking Tool (IRTT) User Guide,” https://www.iso-ne.com/static-assets/documents/support/user_guides/irtt_user_guide.pdf (accessed 2026-01-08).