The Commonwealth's October 20, 2026 "State of Energy in Massachusetts" update had one slide that matters to anyone filing a distributed generation application in a constrained part of the grid. It lists Massachusetts capital investment projects, or CIPs, by docket. Nine are approved. Together they are meant to let more than 1,400 MW of additional distributed generation interconnect. Five more are filed and waiting.
A CIP is not an interconnection approval. It is a planned grid upgrade with rules about who pays for it. If your project sits in one of these areas, the application, the one-line, and the proposal schedule all have to be written with that in mind.
Where Massachusetts capital investment projects came from
In November 2021 the Department of Public Utilities directed the electric utilities to submit capital investment project proposals. The idea was to upgrade parts of the grid before the next wave of solar and storage hit them, instead of making each project pay for its own piece of a substation. The order set timelines, cost limits, and cost sharing between interconnecting facilities and customers.
That is the provisional system planning program. It is related to, but not the same as, the common system modification fee covered in our post on the Massachusetts common system modification fee. Read both if your project lands in an area where an upgrade is planned.
The approved and filed CIPs by area
These are the projects as listed in the October 20 update, with the future distributed generation each one is expected to enable.
| Status | Docket | Area | Utility | DG enabled (MW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approved | 22-47 | Marion-Fairhaven | Eversource | 151 |
| Approved | 22-52 | Plainfield-Blandford | Eversource | 41 |
| Approved | 22-53 | Dartmouth-Westport | Eversource | 71 |
| Approved | 22-54 | Plymouth | Eversource | 402 |
| Approved | 22-55 | Cape | Eversource | 345 |
| Approved | 22-170 | Monson-Palmer-Longmeadow East | National Grid | 85 |
| Approved | 23-06 | Gardner-Winchendon | National Grid | 61 |
| Approved | 23-09 | Barre-Athol | National Grid | 82 |
| Approved | 23-12 | Spencer-Rutland | National Grid | 113 |
| Filed | 25-30 | Southwick-Granville | Eversource | 44 |
| Filed | 25-31 | Monson-Palmer-Longmeadow Northwest | National Grid | 40 |
| Filed | 25-81 | New Bedford | Eversource | 72 |
| Filed | 25-82 | Dalton-Hinsdale | Eversource | 41 |
| Filed | 25-83 | Gill-Montague | Eversource | 75 |
The update totals all fourteen at 1,707 MW. Yes, Barre-Athol is on the list. The name on our door is a coincidence. The 82 MW is not.
Substations still have to be permitted
An approved CIP still has to be built, and some of the build needs a siting decision. The same update lists Energy Facilities Siting Board cases tied to CIP upgrades. The Plymouth/Wareham substation expansion, EFSB 25-02, had a target decision date of October 28. The Fisher Road and Blandford substation expansions were listed with decision dates still to be set. Crystal Spring and the Sterling-to-Warwick line were already decided earlier this year.
That matters for a proposal. If the capacity your project needs depends on a substation that is still in front of the Siting Board, the energization date is not in your control. Do not promise one on the sales sheet. Write the dependency down.
What to put on the application in a CIP area
Athol Energy prepares interconnection drawings for installers and developers filing with Eversource and National Grid in Massachusetts. In a CIP area the drawing work is the same as anywhere else. The consequences of a sloppy number are larger, because the number drives a cost share.
- AC size. Write the nameplate AC size and any export limit as separate numbers. The share is tied to the capacity the utility studies.
- Point of interconnection. Name the pole, the circuit if you have it, and the street. Two descriptions of one point is two points.
- Storage. If a battery is part of the project, show it as its own source on the one-line, with its charging mode written out.
- Revision block. Put the AC size in the revision note so a changed inverter forces a visible revision, not a quiet swap.
Read the utility-specific notes too. Eversource Massachusetts interconnection and National Grid Massachusetts interconnection each have their own forms and screens. A CIP does not replace either one.
If the project is a ground-mount large enough to need a local permit as well, the post on the Massachusetts consolidated local permit covers the town side. The permit and the CIP cost share should be about the same AC size.
Questions about Massachusetts capital investment projects
What is a capital investment project in Massachusetts?
It is a utility grid upgrade proposed under the DPU's provisional system planning program, started by a November 2021 order. CIPs upgrade parts of the grid ahead of time to fit more distributed generation and storage, with set timelines, cost limits, and cost sharing.
Does a project in a CIP area skip interconnection review?
No. The project still files a normal interconnection application with the utility. The CIP affects the upgrade and how its cost is shared, not whether the application is reviewed.
How many CIPs are approved?
As of the October 20, 2026 update, the DPU has approved nine CIPs that will enable more than 1,400 MW of additional capacity. Five more were filed, for a listed total of 1,707 MW.
If you have a project in Plymouth, the Cape, Spencer-Rutland, or anywhere else on that table, send the application draft and the one-line together. Massachusetts solar design from Athol Energy keeps the size, the point of interconnection, and the storage description identical before the utility reads them. Contact us.