Hatfield Select Board Defers Electricity Contract Decision, Weighs Budget Gaps

HATFIELD — April 18, 2023 — Hatfield Select Board defers electricity contract vote while grappling with a $160,000 snow and ice shortfall. Representatives from Colonial Power Group — Mark Capitola and Denise Allard — told Chair Luke Longstreeth and Member Julia Frisby that indicative market pricing has fallen roughly 30 percent from last year's highs, with 12-month supply contracts available around 14.8 cents per kilowatt-hour, down from the town's current locked-in rate of 22.157 cents. Capitola recommended acting within the month and no further than a 24-month term, warning that markets "are going to run again." The board agreed to wait until Eversource files its July 1 basic service rate with the state, expected around May 16. In a joint session with the Finance Committee, the board covered a $160,000 fiscal year 2023 snow and ice deficit from free cash, directed $61,087 in remaining free cash to the capital stabilization fund, and set the vocational education budget line at $563,796 — a partial hedge against a projected $190,000 shortfall driven by higher-than-expected Smith Vocational enrollment.