New York will invest $500 million in offshore wind manufacturing and supply chain infrastructure and electrify 2 million homes by 2030, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday in her 2022 State of the State address.
The state entered 2022 having approved the largest transmission projects in New York in 50 years, with its first OSW project, South Fork, ready to put steel in the water and with officials having approved a plan for reaching emission limits set by the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). (See New York Set to Start Building Big in 2022.)
“With this investment, New York will lead the nation on offshore wind production, creating green jobs for New Yorkers and powering our clean energy future,” Hochul said.
New York will invest up to $500 million in the ports, manufacturing and supply chain infrastructure needed to advance its OSW industry, with state agencies and its Green Bank leveraging private capital to deliver more than $2 billion in economic activity while creating more than 2,000 green jobs.
Hochul also said that the New York Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) will launch its next OSW procurement this year, resulting in at least 2 GW of new projects. NYSERDA will pick up the pace on OSW transmission planning and conduct a study to identify strategic OSW cable corridors and key points of interconnection to the grid.
Anbaric Development Partners lauded the governor’s recognition of the need for a planned transmission system to deliver offshore wind power.
“Studies have continuously demonstrated that transmission planned to accommodate and integrate significant amounts of offshore wind is a much more cost-effective, environmentally sound and electrically reliable approach to integrating clean electricity,” Janice Fuller, Anbaric president for the mid-Atlantic region, said in a statement.
New York also will work to electrify 2 million homes or make them electrification-ready by 2030, and new legislation will seek to ensure that all new building construction reaches zero-emissions by 2027, Hochul said.
Building emissions cause more than one third of New York’s climate pollution, and the new plan will help more than 800,000 low-to-moderate income households secure clean energy upgrades.
“Gov. Hochul’s announcement of $500 million in investments for offshore wind, on the eve of the state’s third solicitation and the upcoming NY Bight Lease sale, is a win for New York communities, workers, businesses and our climate,” Allison Considine, senior campaign representative for Sierra Club, said in a statement. “This significant investment, when paired with commitments to double battery storage to 6 GW by 2030, planning to phase out dirty peaker plants and achieve 2 million all-electric homes by 2030, demonstrates that New York will continue to lead the nation in transitioning from fossil fuels to zero-emission electricity.”
The state-level move on building emissions follows action last month by the New York City Council, which voted to ban the use of natural gas for heating or hot water in new construction or renovations beginning in 2024. (See NYC to Ban Natural Gas in New Buildings Beginning 2024.)