Increased incentives available for customers in select Greater Boston and Southeastern Massachusetts neighborhoods

BOSTON, Mass. (June 25, 2026) - Building on the success of demand response programs that help manage electricity use during periods of peak demand, Eversource today announced ConnectedSolutions+, an initial set of two targeted pilots that expand the company’s ConnectedSolutions program in Greater Boston and Southeastern Massachusetts. The pilots give eligible residential and business customers in select neighborhoods new ways to earn incentives for adjusting their energy use at peak times, helping to reduce demand on the local electric system during high-use periods when electrical equipment is heavily stressed and at higher risk of failure. 

ConnectedSolutions+ is designed to create opportunities for customers to play an active role in maintaining electric grid reliability in their communities, providing increased incentives for the use of distributed energy resources such as eligible home batteries, qualified smart thermostats, building management systems and other connected technologies. Each pilot will explore how customer-side flexibility can serve as a local resource - sometimes referred to as a virtual power plant - by reducing demand during peak energy events or shifting demand to other times when the system is less stressed.

“ConnectedSolutions+ is a practical way to target demand response where it can deliver the most value for local reliability to the benefit of all customers and our region,” said Tilak Subrahmanian, Eversource Vice President of Energy Efficiency and Electric Mobility. “It is an important step in testing how customer-side flexibility can support the grid while easing congestion, keeping supply costs down, and mitigating the need for certain infrastructure investments as electricity demand continues to grow.”

The Greater Boston pilot focuses on reducing peak demand during hot summer afternoons and evenings in areas where the electric system is expected to experience above-average loading as customers lower temperature settings on their air conditioners and other systems to stay cool. Eligible residents and businesses in Alewife, South Boston and Milton can enroll eligible batteries, building management systems or qualified smart thermostats. Incentives include up to $400 per kilowatt (kW) as a residential battery performance incentive and up to $250 per average kW for commercial daily battery participation, with events running June through September. Residential customers who enroll a thermostat can earn $150 upon enrollment, plus $20 after each summer season they stay enrolled. Customers already participating in ConnectedSolutions in these areas will be automatically transferred to ConnectedSolutions+.

The Southeastern Massachusetts pilot addresses a different challenge: periods of midday solar oversupply. Participating batteries and electric vehicles can help maximize benefits of excess solar generation for the whole region by charging between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., when solar production is typically at its highest. With commercial incentives up to $275 per kW in summer, new incentives for the spring and fall season, and a four-year rate lock, the pilot aligns customer charging behavior with system needs in a region experiencing rapid solar growth. This offer is initially available for residential customers in the region who own certain home battery systems. Battery systems will discharge during peak energy events and will be called upon to charge mid-day, soaking up excess solar generation.

This June, Eversource also introduced a targeted Managed Charging+ offer designed to encourage electric vehicle charging during times that are most beneficial for the neighborhood. Customers in Alewife, South Boston and Milton will receive an enhanced incentive of $30 a month for charging only during off-peak hours. In Southeast Massachusetts, customers can also earn $30 a month for shifting their home charging to midday to take advantage of the excess solar that's available in their area. The first of its kind in New England, this innovative offering is shifting load to maximize the use of surplus clean energy resources.

Customers can learn more about eligibility and enrollment at the ConnectedSolutions+ program pages for residents and businesses, and at the Managed Charging+ program page for residents.

Eversource (NYSE: ES), celebrated as a national leader for its corporate citizenship, is recognized as the #1 U.S. utility on TIME’s List of World’s Best Companies for 2024. Eversource transmits and delivers electricity to 1.28 million customers in 149 cities and towns, provides natural gas to 254,000 customers in 85 communities, and supplies water to approximately 217,000 customers in 59 communities across Connecticut. Eversource harnesses the commitment of more than 10,000 employees across three states to build a single, united company around the mission of safely delivering reliable energy and water with superior customer service. The #1 Energy Efficiency Provider in the Nation, the company is empowering a clean energy future in the Northeast, with nationally recognized energy efficiency solutions and successful programs to integrate new clean energy resources like a first-in-the-nation networked geothermal pilot project, solar, offshore wind, electric vehicles and battery storage, into the electric system. For more information, please visit eversource.com, and follow us on X, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. For more information on our water services, visit aquarionwater.com.

CONTACT:
William Hinkle
603-634-2228
william.hinkle@eversource.com 

Olessa Stepanova
781–441–8952
olessa.stepanova@eversource.com