September 18, 2019
New York continues to drive toward its ambitious energy storage target—3,000 MW by 2030—with new projects popping up around the state more often than ever before. The latest announcement comes from New York Public Service Commission (PSC), who delivered the exciting news of a new 316 MW energy storage facility.
The battery-based storage project will be located at Ravenswood Generating Station. This power station is based in Long Island City, Queens, and, as noted, the project will have a storage capacity of up to 316 MW. An energy storage project of such scale marks another big step for the state of New York as it pursues its 3 GW by 2030 goal.
It comes as no surprise that a project of such magnitude will be completed in a number of separate phases—up to 129 MW, 98 MW, and 89 MW, respectively. The scale of the Ravenswood project really comes into focus when you consider the size of the state’s largest energy storage facility thus far—a 20 MW system, recently completed by Key Capture Energy. Each individual phase of the Ravenswood project will eclipse the current largest storage project in New York state, making this a significant marker for the progress of energy storage systems in NY. The first, and largest, portion of the project is set for commercial operation in March of 2021.
The implementation of this energy storage project is also notable for its use of clean energy sources. The battery storage system is set to replace 16 units of gas peaker generation on NY’s electric system. These gas peaker units currently have little-to-no capacity utilization and so the new project will not only improve the state’s ability to meet peak electricity demand, but promises to do so through the use of clean energy.
This new wave of energy storage projects has been accelerated, at least in part, by Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Market Acceleration Bridge Incentive Program. This program, designed to boost the development of energy storage projects in New York, includes a bulk storage project component. The Key Capture Energy system, mentioned above and completed just recently, was the first to avail of the NYSERDA bulk storage incentive—and the Ravenswood project is expected to follow suit in seeking this incentive. There are also additional incentives for those projects paired with renewable energy sources like solar.
Solar-plus storage can bring big savings. If you’re interested in joining the New York solar revolution, contact YSG Solar at 212.389.9215 to discuss solar panels and energy storage.
By Shane Croghan
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