Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, D-N.Y., has announced the release of New York’s Energy Storage Roadmap, which is designed to support the governor’s energy storage target of 1.5 GW by 2025.
New York State currently has approximately 60 MW of advanced energy storage capacity deployed with another 500 MW in the pipeline, in addition to 1,400 MW of traditional pumped hydro storage. In order to advance energy storage development in ways that are “viable, replicable and scalable,” the roadmap recommends the following steps:
- Providing $350 million in statewide market acceleration incentives to fast-track the adoption of advanced storage systems to be located at customer sites or on the distribution or bulk electric systems;
- Adding incentives for energy storage to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) NY-Sun initiative to accelerate the development of solar-plus-storage projects and allow those projects to access federal tax credits before they expire;
- Enacting regulatory changes to utility rates, utility solicitations and carbon values to reflect the system benefits and values of storage projects;
- Continuing to address project permitting and siting challenges and reduce system indirect expenses and soft costs; and
- Recommending modifications to wholesale market rules to better enable storage participation, including allowing storage to meet both electric distribution system and wholesale system needs to provide greater value for ratepayers.
“Clean energy is the future of our planet, and New York will continue to lead the nation in this technology to fight climate change and conserve resources for generations to come,” says Cuomo. “This roadmap is the next step to not only grow our clean energy economy and create jobs but to improve the resiliency of the grid to keep our power running in the face of extreme weather and other emergency situations.”
The plan was developed by the Department of Public Service (DPS) and NYSERDA with input from numerous stakeholders.
“With this roadmap, Governor Cuomo has brought New York once again to the forefront of the nation in developing new energy solutions that will fuel our efforts to build a cleaner energy system for future generations,” states Alicia Barton, president and CEO of NYSERDA. “The roadmap will serve as a guide to jump-starting the market for advanced energy storage projects in New York on our path to achieving 50 percent renewable energy by 2030 and turn the Empire State into a global hub for the burgeoning energy storage industry.”
The New York Power Authority is currently working on several energy storage projects that demonstrate the value of the technology. This work includes a partnership with the State University of New York (SUNY) on multiple projects that would allow the university system to use stored solar power during emergencies and times of peak energy demand. A solar energy and battery storage system was completed this spring at the SUNY New Paltz campus, and planning is underway for a similar system at the SUNY Delhi campus.
Additionally, as proposed by Cuomo in his 2018 State of the State, NY Green Bank seeks to invest at least $200 million in storage-related investments, designed to help drive down costs for the strategic deployment of energy storage at scale. To support this commitment, NY Green Bank has released a request for information to solicit direct interest from project developers on how it can address financing gaps and support energy storage projects. NY Green Bank is also expected to issue a request for proposals later this year for projects combining solar and energy storage.
Richard Kauffman, New York State’s chairman of energy and finance, says, “Energy storage not only increases the use of renewable electricity generation but provides numerous benefits to our environment and economy and improves the resilience of the grid. Under Governor Cuomo, New York’s comprehensive approach supports the growth of the energy storage market by providing financing and policies that support the growth of this sector and ensure we meet the state’s ambitious clean energy goals and combat climate change.”
In his State of the State, Cuomo committed $60 million in NYSERDA funding to energy storage initiatives. NYSERDA has already made almost $22 million available in two separate solicitations as part of New York State’s long-term investment in the energy storage sector.
Multiple technical conferences will be held throughout the state to allow for public feedback on recommendations and approaches identified in the roadmap. The Public Service Commission has created a new proceeding to consider and establish a 2030 storage target and the deployment mechanisms to achieve the 2025 and 2030 energy storage targets by the end of the year. Public comments on the roadmap can be submitted via the DPS website.
