History of Eversource Energy in Timeline

Eversource Energy is a Fortune 500 company providing regulated energy and water services. Headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut, and Boston, Massachusetts, it serves approximately 4 million customers across Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The company operates through its regulated subsidiaries to deliver retail electricity, natural gas, and water services.

1905: Rocky River Power Company Formed

In 1905, J. Henry Roraback formed the Rocky River Power Company.

1917: Connecticut Light and Power Company Formed

In 1917, the Rocky River Power Company became the Connecticut Light and Power Company.

1926: Public Service Company of New Hampshire Formed

In 1926, the Public Service Company of New Hampshire (PSNH) was formed.

1935: Public Utility Holding Company Act Enactment

In 1935, the Public Utility Holding Company Act was enacted.

July 1, 1966: Northeast Utilities Formation

On July 1, 1966, Northeast Utilities (NU) was formed under CEO Lelan Sillin, merging the Connecticut Light and Power Company, Western Massachusetts Electric Company, and the Hartford Electric Light Company.

1967: Holyoke Water Power Company Joins NU System

In 1967, the Holyoke Water Power Company (HWP) joined the Northeast Utilities (NU) System.

January 1988: Public Service Company of New Hampshire Bankruptcy

In January 1988, the Public Service Company of New Hampshire (PSNH) declared bankruptcy due to difficulties in obtaining a license for the Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant.

1992: PSNH Merged into Northeast Utilities

In 1992, the Public Service Company of New Hampshire (PSNH) was merged into Northeast Utilities.

1999: Con Edison and Northeast Utilities Negotiations

In 1999, Con Edison and Northeast Utilities began negotiations for a potential merger.

1999: Divestment of Generating Assets

In 1999, as required by New England legislation, the company divested generating assets of WMECO and CL&P. Some assets were transferred to Northeast Generation while others, like WMECO's West Springfield Generating Station, were sold to Con Edison.

2000: Divestment of Nuclear Generating Assets

Between 2000 and 2002, Northeast Utilities (NU) divested WMECO, CL&P, and PSNH's nuclear generating assets due to state laws. These assets included stakes in Seabrook, Millstone, and Vermont Yankee stations.

2001: Con Edison Backs Out of Merger

In 2001, Con Edison withdrew from the merger with Northeast Utilities after legal threats from Connecticut's Attorney General.

2001: Holyoke Water Power Company Assets Sold

In 2001, Northeast Utilities (NU) sold the assets and operations of its subsidiary, the Holyoke Water Power Company, to the City of Holyoke, with the exception of the Mt. Tom coal-fired power plant.

2002: Divestment of Nuclear Generating Assets

November 2005: Sale of Unregulated Competitive Businesses Announced

In November 2005, the company announced its intent to sell its unregulated competitive businesses, including generation and energy services.

November 2006: Divestiture of Competitive Businesses Completed

By November 2006, the company had largely completed the divestiture of its competitive businesses.

2006: Decision to Sell Retained Generating Units

In 2006, Northeast Utilities (NU) decided to sell generating units it had retained in the 1999 divestiture as competitive suppliers and shut down its competitive generation business units. The assets were sold to Energy Capital Partners.

October 2010: Northeast Utilities Announces Merger with NSTAR

In October 2010, Northeast Utilities announced a merger with NSTAR, retaining the Northeast Utilities name initially.

2010: Joint Venture for HVDC Line

As Northeast Utilities, the company entered a joint venture with Hydro-Québec and NSTAR in 2010 to build a new high-voltage direct current (HVDC) line from Windsor, Quebec, to Franklin, New Hampshire.

2010: Shareholder Returns

Between 2010 and 2015, Eversource's shareholders of common stock received a cumulative total return of 89 percent.

April 2012: Merger Deal Closed

In April 2012, the merger between Northeast Utilities and NSTAR was finalized after receiving government approvals.

February 2, 2015: Eversource Energy Rebrands

On February 2, 2015, New England Gas & Electric System and Commonwealth Energy Systems, direct legal successors of the Associated Gas & Electric System, rebranded as "Eversource Energy".

February 19, 2015: Stock Symbol Change

On February 19, 2015, Eversource Energy's stock symbol changed from "NU" to "ES".

November 2015: Sierra Club Opposition to HVDC Line

In November 2015, the Sierra Club of New Hampshire opposed the proposed high-voltage direct current (HVDC) line, citing concerns about its benefits for New Hampshire residents, the flooding of boreal forests, disputes with the Innu First Nations, and environmental impacts.

2015: NSTAR High Return

In 2015, Attorney General Healey referenced NSTAR's return of more than 13 percent, pointing out the unlikelihood of any other state public utility commission allowing such a high return.

2015: Agreement to Sell New Hampshire Generation Assets

In 2015, Eversource agreed to sell all of its New Hampshire generation assets, similar to previous sales in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

2015: Opposition to Rooftop Solar

In 2015, Eversource opposed the rooftop solar industry and supported anti-solar policies, lobbying against solar legislation in Massachusetts and opposing an increase to New Hampshire's solar net metering cap.

2015: Investigation by FERC

In 2015, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) initiated an investigation into Eversource due to concerns that its electric transmission rates may be “unjust, unreasonable and unduly discriminatory or preferential”.

2016: Joint Ventures for Wind Farm Developments

In 2016, Eversource began joint ventures for wind farm developments with Ørsted.

2016: Political Expenditures Disclosed

In 2016, Eversource disclosed politically related organization expenditures, including $110,000 to the Democratic Governors Association, and over $135,000 in payments to trade associations for lobbying and political activities.

June 2017: Merger with Aquarion Water Company Announced

In June 2017, Eversource announced its merger with Aquarion Water Company for $1.675 billion. Aquarion would become a fully-owned subsidiary.

November 14, 2017: Class-action Lawsuit Filed

On November 14, 2017, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Avangrid, Inc. and Eversource Energy, claiming the companies caused electricity consumers to incur overcharges of $3.6 billion in a years-long scheme that impacted six states and affected 14.7 million people.

November 29, 2017: Approval of New Hampshire Generation Asset Sale

On November 29, 2017, the state's Public Utilities Commission approved the sale of Eversource's New Hampshire generation fleet.

November 30, 2017: Rate Hike Approved

On November 30, 2017, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities approved a reduced rate hike for Eversource Energy.

December 2017: Merger with Aquarion Completed

In December 2017, the merger between Eversource and Aquarion Water Company was finalized after receiving government approval.

December 20, 2017: Attorney General Appeals Rate Hike Ruling

On December 20, 2017, Attorney General Maura Healey appealed the DPU ruling in the Eversource rate case, specifically the approval of a 10 percent shareholder return.

2017: Accusations of Driving Up Electric, Gas Rates

In 2017, Eversource and Avangrid were accused by an environmental group of increasing electric and gas rates by purchasing shipment capacity on a major pipeline without fully utilizing it. The Environmental Defense Fund alleged that the utilities reserved large deliveries of natural gas on the Algonquin pipeline system for cold days, then reduced the orders too late for others to use the capacity, driving up wholesale prices during peak winter heating periods.

2017: Attorney General Testifies Against Rate Increase

In March 2017, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey testified against Eversource's proposed $300 million rate increase, challenging its necessity given high returns from NSTAR and WMECo.

January 10, 2018: Completion of New Hampshire Generation Asset Sale

On January 10, 2018, the sale of Eversource's New Hampshire generation assets was completed.

January 25, 2018: Massachusetts Governor Selects Northern Pass Transmission Project

On January 25, 2018, Massachusetts Governor Baker selected the "Northern Pass Transmission" (NPT) project as the winner for a clean energy procurement RFP.

January 30, 2018: Oversight Hearing on Net Metering

On January 30, 2018, Massachusetts Representative Thomas Golden and Senator Michael Barrett held an Oversight Hearing on the Department of Public Utilities' decision to approve Eversource's proposal regarding net metering customers. Representative Golden criticized the utility for making the new charges confusing.

February 1, 2018: Northern Pass Project Permit Denied

On February 1, 2018, the New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee unanimously rejected Eversource's Northern Pass project permit, impacting the project's future and Eversource's Transmission Rate Base Growth Projections.

2018: FERC Investigation Results

In 2018, FERC announced their investigation found no evidence of anticompetitive withholding of natural gas pipeline capacity on Algonquin Gas Transmission by New England shippers. The review determined that the Environmental Defense Fund's study was flawed and led to incorrect conclusions.

2018: Electric Vehicle Charging Station Project

Starting in 2018, Eversource began a five-year, $45 million project to install over 400 electric vehicle charging stations in Massachusetts as part of its Grid Modernization plan.

June 10, 2019: Lawsuit Dismissal

On June 10, 2019, the class-action lawsuit against Avangrid and Eversource was thrown out of court. The judge stated that natural gas prices are federally regulated and could not be interfered with by the court.

July 26, 2019: Eversource Gives Up on Northern Pass

On July 26, 2019, Eversource Energy announced they were abandoning the Northern Pass project after the New Hampshire Supreme Court rejected their appeal.

2023: Eversource to Sell Off Equity in Wind Projects

In 2023, Eversource announced it would sell off its equity in wind farm projects (Bay State Wind, South Fork Wind, Revolution Wind, and Sunrise Wind) at an expected loss of $200 million.