Con Edison halts new natgas connections in Westchester Cty, NY due to delivery constraints
Con Edison recently announced it is curtailing new natural gas connections in the Westchester County, N.Y., service area due to supply limitations.
The company, which provides energy for 10 million New York City and Westchester County residents, cited a surge in demand for natural gas associated with economic development along with pressure created by a lack of adequate pipelines to transport natural gas to its service area.
“The demand for natural gas in our service area has been experiencing significant growth primarily due to the construction of new buildings, the opening of new businesses, and conversions from oil to cleaner-burning natural gas in existing buildings,” the company said on Jan. 18. In order to maintain service to existing customers, Con Edison said beginning March 15 it will not be accepting new applications for natural gas connections in most of its Westchester County service area. Existing customers will not be affected.
The moratorium will remain in effect until sufficient supply is available to meet new demand, the company said, such as through developing additional non-pipeline alternatives, or a pipeline project that meets federal and local requirements.
Meanwhile, the utility is granting exceptions to the moratorium in Westchester County, according to certain conditions. Small business customers in the food/beverage industry who are signing new leases may still be able to use an existing service for cooking. Customers with planned renovations who already have natural gas may also be exempt. Additionally, customers in the northernmost sections of Westchester County may not be impacted because those areas are served by a less-constrained gas transmission pipeline, the company said.
The New York Public Service Commission (PSC) plans to lead a “comprehensive analysis and develop a report to review the changing market conditions that gave rise to Con Edison’s decision and to develop recommendations to make certain that utilities across the state are able to meet customer needs in a manner consistent with the State’s energy goals,” PSC Chair John Rhodes said.
The PSC will begin hosting public hearings the week of Feb. 11 to gather feedback from stakeholders to include as part of the report’s analysis and recommendations.
PSC also notes that “staff will analyze short-term and long-term market conditions, along with the capacity of natural gas infrastructure and alternatives, and their role in aiding the transition to a clean energy economy.” The report will be submitted by July 1 to the PSC and State Energy Planning Board.
While there has been talk of adding capacity to the region via building a new pipeline, politics, regulatory costs and environmental concerns have prevented the idea from advancing. The last pipeline added to the area went into service in 2013.
Last year Con Edison submitted a proposal to the PSC to invest in natural gas and offer new incentives for customers who upgrade their heating equipment or install heat pumps to lower the amount of natural gas they use.
The PSC is expected to consider Con Edison’s petition for approval of the Smart Solutions for Natural Gas Customers Program at its Feb. 7 meeting. The company is seeking $305 million in funding for the program.
The proposed measures seek to offset peak-day gas demand by 84,500 dekatherms, which the company said would result in avoiding the equivalent of 5 million tons of carbon dioxide over the life of the program.
Con Edison has proposed constructing up to three gas facilities that would turn food and yard waste into natural gas. It also calls for building between two to five compressed natural gas facilities and liquefied natural gas storage sites in Westchester County that would accept fuel transported by trucks.
Energy efficiency incentives are also incorporated into the program. The plan calls for payments to encourage customers to invest in energy efficient heating equipment to replace older, less efficient equipment and also incentives that lower upfront costs for customers who invest in heat pumps to electrify their heating systems.
Con Edison proposes to work with customers to electrify their space heating. The plan includes installing ground-source heat pumps at up to 8,800 single-family homes in Westchester County.
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) also offers clean heating system rebates. NYSERDA provides participating installers with $500 per qualified air source heat pump system installed. The authority also offers installers a $1,200 to $1,500 per cooling ton for qualified ground source heat pump system installed.
