If there’s one constant in the energy market, it’s volatility. This past summer, New York energy price swings continued. For example, Con Edison raised gas prices by 8.4 percent and electricity rates by 9.1 percent on August 1. These increases will be followed by additional hikes in January of 2024 and 2025.
“From the Brooklyn Clean Energy Hub’s offshore wind power project to the battery storage facility approved in Brookhaven, these initiatives are not just about sustainability; they are about job creation and financial progress,” says Good Energy’s Managing Partner Javier Barrios. “Good Energy is excited to share several solutions that bring affordability to low-income segments while meeting economic development objectives.”
The ever-changing energy market and pricing continues to be a concern for New York residents and business, the state and municipalities have taken steps to more environmentally friendly alternatives that may also save consumers energy costs.
For example, ConEd has started construction of the Brooklyn Clean Energy Hub, an $810 million project that has a 1,500-megawatt capacity for offshore wind power that could power 750,000 homes. The hub is at the site of the former Hudson Avenue Generating Station off the East River in Vinegar Hill. With a completion date of 2029, the project will create more than 500 skilled union jobs.
In October, The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today approved the construction and operation of a battery-based energy storage facility in the Town of Brookhaven,
Suffolk County. The $160 million battery storage plant will be built by Holtsville Energy Storage, LLC, an independent developer of battery storage projects.
Expected to be operational by 2025, this energy storage facility to be located on the southwest corner of Expressway Drive South and Morris Avenue in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County.
“Energy storage is vital to building flexibility into the grid and advancing Governor Kathy Hochul’s ambitious clean energy goals,” said Commission Chair Rory M. Christian. “This project advances New York State’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction and renewable energy goals as outlined in the Climate Act.”
Potentially, this battery storage facility could reducing reliance on older oil- and natural gas-fired plants in New York State. The project will generate local property tax revenues along with up to 200 local jobs during construction, plus some long-term jobs once it is operational. Battery energy storage facilities can also lead to long-term cost savings for electricity consumers by lowering the overall cost of providing electricity and by allowing customers to avoid paying premium pricing or peak-demand rates.
New York leads the nation in a climate agenda that calls for an orderly and just transition that creates family-sustaining jobs, continues to foster a green economy across all sectors and ensures that at least 35 percent, with a goal of 40 percent, of the benefits of clean energy investments are directed to disadvantaged communities.
Guided by some of the nation’s most aggressive climate and clean energy initiatives, New York is on a path to achieving a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040, including 70 percent renewable energy generation by 2030, and economywide carbon neutrality by mid-century. A cornerstone of this transition is New York’s unprecedented clean energy investments, including more than $35 billion in 120 large-scale renewable and transmission projects across the state, $6.8 billion to reduce building emissions, $3.3 billion to scale up solar, and more than $1 billion for clean transportation initiatives.