Created Nearly 1,800 Jobs, Spurred Nearly $800 Million in Private Investment While Contributing Nearly $70 Million in Direct Payments to Host Communities and Enough Energy to Power More than 150,000 New York Homes
Represents Significant Progress Towards Achievement of New York’s Climate Act Goal for 70 percent Renewable Electricity by 2030
During Earth Week, Governor Kathy Hochul today announced eight new large-scale renewable energy infrastructure projects have been completed in the last six months to deliver clean energy to New York’s power grid. During development and construction, the projects supported the creation of nearly 1,800 jobs and spurred nearly $800 million in private investment across the state while contributing nearly $70 million to their host communities in the form of school, town, and county payments. Together, these eight projects total 418 megawatts, enough renewable energy to power more than 150,000 New York homes and reduce nearly 600,000 tons of carbon emissions annually, equivalent to removing almost 120,000 cars off the road each year. Today’s announcement represents significant progress towards the achievement of New York’s Climate Act goal for 70 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy by 2030.
“One of my administration’s top priorities is transforming New York’s electricity system and building a thriving green economy,” Governor Hochul said. “These large-scale renewable energy infrastructure projects supported the creation of hundreds of clean, green jobs and will deliver clean energy to hundreds of thousands of New York homes. This Earth Week, we are seeing how clean energy can transform communities and lead to a greener future for all New Yorkers.”
Today’s announcement was made at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Grissom Solar project in Montgomery County. Located on approximately 100 acres in the Town of Mohawk, the 20-megawatt project, developed and constructed by CS Energy and owned by MN8 Energy with tax equity financing from M&T Community & Environmental Development LLC, a subsidiary of M&T Bank Corporation (“M&T”), was built with $28 million in private investment and created 148 jobs to support its construction and ongoing operations and maintenance in the Mohawk Valley.
The recently completed projects include:
Central New York
- Janis Solar (Cortland County): a 20 MW solar facility developed and constructed by CS Energy and is owned by MN8 Energy with tax equity financing from M&T Community & Environmental Development LLC, a subsidiary M&T in the Town of Willet was completed on March 17, 2023.
Mohawk Valley
- Grissom Solar (Montgomery County): a 20 MW solar facility developed and constructed by CS Energy and is owned by MN8 Energy with tax equity financing from M&T Community & Environmental Development LLC, a subsidiary of M&T in the Town of Mohawk was completed on March 17, 2023.
- Regan Solar (Montgomery County): a 20 MW solar facility developed and constructed by CS Energy and is owned by MN8 Energy with tax equity financing from M&T Community & Environmental Development LLC, a subsidiary of M&T in the Town of Mohawk was completed on December 29, 2022.
North Country
- Chasm Falls Hydro (Franklin County): a 1.6 MW hydropower facility in the Town of Chateauguay that was returned to service by Ampersand Hydro on November 2, 2022.
- Number Three Wind (Lewis County): a 103.9 MW wind facility developed by Invenergy in the Towns of Harrisburg and Lowville was completed on April 14, 2023.
Southern Tier
- Baron Winds I (Steuben County): a 121.8 MW wind facility developed by RWE in the Towns of Cohocton, Dansville, and Wayland was completed on February 7, 2023.
- Eight Point Wind (Steuben County): a 111.2 MW wind facility developed by NextEra Energy in the Towns of Greenwood and West Union was completed on February 8, 2023.
- Puckett Solar (Chenango County): a 20 MW solar facility developed and constructed by CS Energy and is owned by MN8 Energy with tax equity financing from M&T Community & Environmental Development LLC, a subsidiary of M&T in the Town of Greene was completed on October 21, 2022.
According to NYSERDA President and CEO Doreen M. Harris, “Governor Hochul’s commitment to New York’s clean energy transition is reaffirmed by the completion of these projects, which have helped power more homes with clean, renewable energy, brought forward new jobs, and spurred local economic development. As we continue on a path towards a zero-emission future, accelerating the development and completion of the dozens of wind and solar projects in our pipeline will continue to be a priority for NYSERDA and we look forward to continuing to work with stakeholders to ensure these projects are advanced in a responsible and timely manner.”
These projects, which were awarded by NYSERDA in 2016 and 2017, were completed following productive engagement with local communities. NYSERDA’s growing portfolio of projects are being designed and constructed in ways that avoid development on the highest-quality agricultural lands, include mitigation measures when appropriate, or commit funding to support regional agricultural operations – helping to preserve and protect New York’s valuable agricultural and environmental resources.
New York has a robust pipeline of 120 large-scale renewable energy and transmission projects, which are expected to deliver over 14,200 megawatts of new clean power to the grid when completed – enough to power nearly five and a half million New York homes. The State’s commitment to building out new green energy transmission, led by 250 miles of new major upgrades already underway throughout the state, and with the Clean Path New York and Champlain Hudson Power Express transmission lines approved in April, will allow the current pipeline of renewables to power over 66 percent of New York’s electricity from renewable sources once operational. This renewable energy portfolio will be bolstered by NYSERDA’s sixth competitive solicitation, announced last September, calling for 2,000 megawatts or more of new large-scale renewable energy projects, which maintains the predictable pace of state-contracted opportunities for private renewable energy developers. NYSERDA expects to announce the awards in the summer of 2023.
photos by Pixabay
