July 22 (Renewables Now) – Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York state, on Tuesday issued a massive procurement round targeting up to 4 GW of renewable energy projects directly addressed towards fighting climate change.
The solicitation seeks to award up to 2.5 GW of offshore wind capacity and 1.5 GW of land-based, large-scale renewable energy projects, the implementation of which is seen as a move that could revive economic activity following the COVID-19 crisis. Combined, these two competitive rounds, together with a competitive multi-port funding opportunity, are expected to create around USD 7 billion (EUR 6.07bn) in direct investments in the state and open nearly 4,500 jobs.
“During one of the most challenging years New York has ever faced, we remain laser-focused on implementing our nation-leading climate plan and growing our clean energy economy, not only to bring significant economic benefits and jobs to the state, but to quickly attack climate change at its source by reducing our emissions,” Cuomo said.
OFFSHORE WIND & PORT INFRASTRUCTURE
According to the governor, the tender for offshore wind capacity could place the state halfway toward its goal of having 9 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2035, while also supporting New York State in its mandate to secure 70% of its overall electricity from renewable energy by 2030.
The competition will seek to award at least 1 GW of offshore wind capacity, with bids to be accepted for projects ranging from 400 MW to 2,500 MW. It also requests proposals for investment in port infrastructure, providing USD 200 million in public funding to support local and private investment in such schemes. Separately, Empire State Development will provide USD 100 million in grant funding and USD 100 million more will come from private low-interest financing.
The state has already prequalified 11 bidders in a Request for Qualifications held in October 2019, proposing port sites located from Long Island to the Capital Region. They will be allowed to partner with offshore wind developers to receive a share of the USD 200 million in public funding.
Bids in the combined offshore wind and ports solicitation will be accepted by October 20, 2020, with contracts to be awarded in the last quarter of the year.
LAND-BASED RENEWABLES
This tender round is split into two categories — projects being procured by New York Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and schemes being procured by the New York Power Authority (NYPA). The first one calls for the development of Tier-1 eligible renewable energy projects that will generate 1.6 million MWh or more annually. Eligible projects have to be commissioned within the January 1, 2015 -November 30, 2022 period, with the option for extensions to November 30, 2025. Bids are due by August 27.
The selected projects will be fast-tracked to construction under recently passed legislation aimed at speeding up siting procedures for renewable energy projects. Winners are expected to be announced in early 2021.
The solicitation by NYPA is targeting projects that will be capable of producing 2 million MWh of electricity or more per year from solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind. An option for energy storage capacity is included, as well. Projects in this category must have capacities of between 20 MW and 25 MW or over 100 MW.
The contracts that will be eventually signed will include energy, capacity and Renewable Energy Credits (RECs). NYPA will await applications until September 14 and will announce the selected bidders by the end of this year. The capacity has to be brought online between 2021 and 2024.
(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.867)
