New York adds $160 million for clean energy investments

April 07, 2015 – New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced an additional $160 million investment to grow large scale clean energy projects as part of the State’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) strategy.

Funding is being made available to support public-private sector partnerships in clean energy projects. Funding will be administered competitively, and proposals will improve energy affordability and reliability, while also expanding new economic development opportunities and protecting the environment.

“This funding is a crucial resource for the development of New York’s clean energy infrastructure, and by supporting large scale projects we are ensuring that the grid can meet the needs of a growing economy,” Governor Cuomo said.

“Investing in these kinds of projects is another example of how we are building a cleaner and more sustainable future in New York State, and I look forward to seeing that progress unfold in the years ahead.”

REV calls for creating a cleaner, more reliable and more affordable energy system in New York State. This funding will support significant private investment in renewable energy sources such as wind farms, fuel cells, biomass facilities, renewable biogas and the upgrading of small- to medium-sized hydropower projects that provide power to the electric grid. More information about the solicitation process is available at nyserda.ny.gov/rfp3084.

This $160 million competitive solicitation promotes development of a broad range of new clean energy resources. Contracts for these projects will be awarded for a term of up to 20 years. Recognizing the maturation of fuel cell equipment, for the first time ever, fuel cell projects will also be eligible for 20-year contracts.

Support for these new grid-based projects will be provided by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) through the Main Tier of the State’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), which is New York’s primary policy to promote the development of new large-scale renewable energy resources.

For every $1 invested in RPS Main Tier projects, New York realizes $3 in economic benefits. More than $3 billion of direct investment in New York State is expected as a result of existing Main Tier projects in the form of jobs, payments to public entities, in-state purchase of goods and services and land leases

NYSERDA’s previous nine RPS Main Tier solicitations for large-scale renewable projects have resulted in approximately 2,036 megawatts of installed capacity at 65 projects that, once operational, will generate more than five million megawatt-hours of renewable energy annually. Another Main Tier solicitation is expected to be released in 2016.

New York State Energy and Finance Chairman Richard Kauffman said, “While we envision a more localized power grid in the future, it is imperative we ensure our large-scale generation sources are as clean as possible. With certainty and transparency, New York State is establishing itself as an attractive environment for private developers to invest and create new jobs in the state’s growing clean economy.”

About Reforming the Energy Vision

Under Governor Cuomo’s strategic Reforming the Energy Vision initiative, New York State is actively spurring clean energy innovation, bringing in new investments and improving consumer choice through initiatives such as the Clean Energy Fund, $1 billion NY-Sun Initiative, $1 billion NY Green Bank, $40 million NY-Prize competition for community microgrids and others.

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