New York State awards 22 large scale solar, energy storage projects

New York State recently awarded 22 large-scale solar and energy storage projects, the state’s largest land-based renewable energy procurement to date.

These 22 projects will spur over $2.7 billion in private investment and create over 3,000 short- and long-term jobs across the state. The awards move the state closer to its goal to obtain 100 percent of the state’s electricity from renewable sources by 2040.

“Today’s investments will put us on a path to making New York a greener place to live while also creating new jobs and spurring economic development,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said. “These projects will allow us to not just meet but exceed our goal of obtaining 70 percent of our electricity from renewable resources and will further cement New York as a national leader in the fight against climate change.”

The 22 projects are spread across the state, including the 350-MW Ridge View Solar Energy Center in Niagara County, the 100-MW Fort Edward Solar project in the Capital Region, the 100-MW Harvest Hills Solar project in Central New York, the 350-MW Columbia Solar Energy Center in the Mohawk Valley, the 250-MW Fort Covington Solar Farm in the North Country, and the 160-MW Yellow Barn Solar project in the Southern Tier – to name a few.

With these projects, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) is on the path to building a renewable energy pipeline capable of powering the equivalent of two-thirds of the state. These projects will generate approximately 4.5 million megawatt-hours of renewable energy annually, enough to power over 620,000 homes and reduce carbon emissions by more than 2.2 million metric tons annually. Further, six of these awarded projects will also be paired with energy storage facilities, comprising 159 megawatts of utility-scale energy storage capacity.

“With the largest portfolio of projects awarded to date, New York is strengthening an already massive renewable energy pipeline that is positioned to deliver increasing amounts of clean and affordable electricity to thousands of families across the state for years to come. NYSERDA is committed to working with the awarded developers, local host governments, and community stakeholders throughout the project development process to responsibly site projects, including the protection of prime agricultural land, and ensure that they cross the finish line on time,” NYSERDA President and CEO Doreen Harris said.

The state has a pipeline of 120 solar, land-based wind, and offshore wind projects under development that will deliver over 14,200 megawatts of clean power to the grid when completed.