New York announces onshore wind solicitation amid ‘urgent climate crisis’

The state has an aggressive climate goal of obtaining 70% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. 

“New York is building a clean energy economy that will allow us to drastically lower emissions while creating thousands of new good-paying jobs, boosting billions of dollars in economic growth, and spurring an injection of private investment into our local communities,” Hochul said. 

“Once selected, these projects will help accelerate our mission to power our state with affordable, reliable, zero-emission electricity for the benefit of all New Yorkers.” 

Final proposals for the large-scale land-based renewable energy projects are due on 8 August 2024. Conditional award notifications are expected in September.  

‘Record-breaking’ heat wave 

“As we enter what is expected to be another summer with record-breaking heat and air quality alerts, the urgent need to tackle the climate crisis has never been more evident,” said New York environmental group League of Conservation Voters’ president Julie Tighe. 

“It’s time to transition off fossil fuels and deliver clean energy, and this solicitation will help do just that,” she continued.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (Nyserda), which will oversee the competitive solicitation, has included key provisions from the latest rounds of renewable energy procurements. 

This includes inflation indexing, labour provisions, stakeholder engagement requirements, new requirements emphasising the importance of climate resiliency in project design, disadvantaged community commitments and agricultural land preservation. 

These elements are designed to support the development and construction of numerous mature, late-stage renewable energy projects seeking to start operating in the near term, said the governor’s office.