New York State Announces $150 Million for Renewable Energy Projects
Funding Will Increase Investments in Wind, Hydroelectric, Solar, Biomass, and Other Renewables
Albany, N.Y. — The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the Public Service Commission (PSC) have announced that $150 million is available to fund a broad range of renewable energy generation projects that will reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and help build a clean-energy economy in New York State.
Supported by the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), the funds will be awarded competitively through a solicitation released today for electric generation projects using wind, hydroelectric, biomass or other clean-energy resources. Awards under this solicitation are expected to be announced in mid-December.
Under the RPS program, NYSERDA has awarded funding on a competitive basis to 51 large-scale renewable electricity generators that are expected to produce enough electricity to provide 5.3 million megawatt-hours of renewable energy per year which is enough renewable energy to power more than 760,000 homes. These projects include 3 biomass facilities, 8 landfill biogas operations, 23 hydroelectric upgrades, and 17 wind farms.
New York’s RPS program has been highly successful at attracting investments in clean energy and diversifying the in-state resource mix. Wind capacity in operation is nearly 28 times what existed prior to the RPS Program and, in 2010, New York was ranked first in the Northeast and eighth nationally in installed wind capacity.
“The millions of megawatt-hours generated by renewable resources in New York State will have a substantial impact on reducing the fossil fuels we consume to make electricity. The RPS program allows New York to continue to attract clean-energy investments and create jobs while at the same time improving the environment,” said NYSERDA President and CEO Francis J. Murray Jr.
Garry Brown, Chairman of the PSC said, “The generation of electricity from renewable sources increases energy diversity and promotes a better environment for us all. Developing renewable energy resources, along with our energy efficiency efforts, provides our best hope toward ending dependency on fossil fuels, improving regional economies, and reducing harmful emissions.”
It is estimated that the projects currently in the program will deliver to New York more than $2.1 billion in direct economic benefits over the next 20 years. These benefits will come in the form of long-term and short-term jobs, property tax payments to local towns, schools, and counties, in-state purchases of goods and services, land lease payments to landowners, and various other economic benefits. When the effects induced on the broader economy are considered, the total economic benefits have been estimated to be $4.5 billion.
This is the second solicitation for large-scale renewable electricity generation issued by NYSERDA since the Commission’s RPS funding decision in April 2010. NYSERDA maintains on its website a schedule of future solicitations, which are expected to take place at least twice annually over the next several years. Information on the RPS program can be found at: https://www.nyserda.org/rps/pastSolicitations.asp.
Tags: electric generation projects, electricity generators, energy diversity, energy economy, energy investments, generation of electricity, greenhouse gas emissions, increases energy, new york energy, new york state energy, renewable electricity, renewable energy, renewable energy generation, renewable portfolio standard, renewable sources, solar new york, state energy research, state resource
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