Hatfield Select Board Tables Community Power Rate Hike, Seeks Written Justification

HATFIELD — January 27, 2026 — Hatfield Select Board tables energy aggregation rate change after grilling Colonial Power Group on contract terms. The board on January 27 declined to approve a proposed mid-contract adjustment to the town's Community Power Choice electricity aggregation rate, asking Colonial Power Group representatives Mark Capadonna and Denise Allard to return with historical savings data, final supplier figures, and the contract language allowing the change before any vote. The adjustment was prompted by the Day Ahead Ancillary Services Initiative, a new ISO New England fee that has reached roughly eight to nine times its projected cost, running up roughly $660 million across New England against an original $125 million estimate. With approximately 34 months remaining on the current contract through 2028, Capadonna estimated the impact at roughly $3 per month per residential customer. The board also heard a conceptual design update on the D.F. Riley Grist Mill Dam removal on the Mill River, where engineers from Tighe & Bond and the Connecticut River Conservancy presented plans targeting permit applications in summer 2026 and construction in winter 2028–29.