New York State opens doors to $1bn of renewables investment

New York State has opened its doors again to clean energy investors by launching its third open solicitation period for proposals to develop large-scale renewables projects.

Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration is putting “dozens” of development contracts up for grabs over the next two months. According to a statement his administration released this week, New York is turning to the private sector for help in meeting Cuomo’s Green New Deal goal of using renewables to meet 100 percent of the state’s energy needs by 2040.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority is managing the renewables tender, which it expects will bring $1 billion in investments and generate 1.5 million MWh of electricity. Proposals are due by 13 June and contracts will be awarded in November.

The solicitation is smaller than the previous two, which awarded a combined $2.9 billion in contracts and resulted in $7 billion of investments. In both solicitations, NYSERDA began by seeking 1.5 million MWh of new generation and has now awarded contracts for projects that will generate more than 7 million MWh.

NYSERDA did not respond to a request for comment.

The first solicitation began in June 2017 and awarded 26 contracts to build 1.4GW of renewables facilities. These comprised 22 solar projects, three wind projects and one hydroelectric project.

The second solicitation began last April and has yet to award contracts. However, NYSERDA said in a statement at the time that bid prices were 23 percent lower than those for the first tender.

Cuomo has been a proponent of building out New York’s clean energy sector, pushing an agenda to fight global warming while bringing investment to the state.

“This action builds on our strong commitment to renewable energy and will be a critical part of the state’s bold plan to meet the unprecedented challenge posed by climate change,” Cuomo said in the statement.

According to the governor’s website, his administration has committed to phasing out coal power by 2020, increased solar power by 1,500 percent and is working on a framework to allow the development of offshore wind assets.