NYSERDA advances New York State’s 70 percent by 2030 renewables target

Last week the New York State Department of Public Service (DPS) and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) filed a White Paper on which stakeholders and members of the public are invited to comment. It recommends policies and procurement targets to meet the requirements of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), including the “70 by 30” goal – the target of meeting 70 percent renewable electricity by 2030 and setting the State on the path to achieve a carbon free power sector by 2040.

Specifically, the White Paper:

• Proposes to implement key provisions in the CLCPA related to securing 70 percent renewable energy by 2030, including defining renewable energy technology eligibility and the amount of renewable energy needed to meet New York’s goal;
• Identifies annual procurement targets for the Tier 1 large-scale renewable energy program adopted under the CES and recommends changes to the existing procurement process;
• Proposes procurement targets for offshore wind renewable energy credits intended to meet the requirement of securing nine gigawatts of offshore wind by 2035;
• Proposes the creation of a Tier 4 large-scale renewable program under the CES to specifically value environmental attributes associated with renewable energy deliveries into New York City;
• Proposes a methodology for extending Tier 1 renewable energy eligibility to renewable energy facilities that undergo repowering;
• Invites comment on whether, and the extent to which, baseline generation from NYPA’s hydroelectric resources should be used by NYPA as a self-supply option under NYSERDA’s proposed Competitive Tier 2 program; and
• Addresses the actions already taken, and those that will be taken, to ensure that disadvantaged communities realize the maximum number of benefits from achieving the goals of the CLCPA.

Offshore wind

For offshore wind, NYSERDA recommends that the Commission formally adopt the CLCPA’s minimum goal of 9 GW of offshore by 2035 and grant NYSERDA authority to procure the remaining amount of ORECs necessary to achieve that goal. NYSERDA also requested annual offshore wind procurements but with enough flexibility to respond to market dynamics and make adjustment based on past procurements. They will be conducted to ensure that the cumulative contracted capacity is between 750 MW and 1,000 MW per year through 2027.

Based on an offshore wind cost analysis completed with RCG [↑], NYSERDA and Commission Staff projected costs and benefits of proposed Tier 1 and offshore wind procurements to estimate the contributions each type of generation would make to the 70 by 30 target. As seen in the chart below, new offshore wind procurements are expected to comprise 17,868 GWh/year or about 11.8% of the total 2030 renewables target.

The policy announcement is a welcome economic stimulus in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, with the accelerated investment in infrastructure supporting  the energy transition and creating jobs (see RCG’s post on Coronavirus: Impact on the renewables sector [↑]).