FOUR DEVELOPERS PROPOSE OFFSHORE WIND TRANSMISSION PLANS: Four different developers have submitted a total of 28 proposals to the state’s independent grid operator to hook up offshore wind projects to the New York City grid. The projects would be a huge infrastructure investment in decarbonizing the fossil-dependent and aging city system. The proposals, which the New York Independent System Operator posted a summary of on Monday, are the latest step in a yearslong process endorsed by the state’s Public Service Commission to integrate 9 gigawatts of offshore wind on Con Edison’s grid. The NYISO will evaluate and select one of the proposals. A similar process led to the selection of a $3.3 billion project being developed by New York Power Authority and New York Transco to integrate offshore wind into Long Island’s grid. For the New York City process, NYPA teamed up with another transmission partner, LS Power Grid. That pairing submitted a dozen “Five Boro Energy Connect” projects — some larger in terms of the number of offshore cables and platforms than any projects proposed by other developers. New York Transco, which is backed by affiliates of the state’s investor-owned utilities, proposed 10 different “Energy Link” projects, with various options for interconnection points and other modifications. New York Transco was the only developer to propose options without Con Ed’s Brooklyn Clean Energy Hub as an injection point for offshore wind power. The other two developers submitted only three proposals each. EnergyRe — part of the team developing the Clean Path New York transmission line that has a New York state contract but faces financial uncertainty — proposed the “Clean Borough Power Link” projects. EnergyRe plans to leverage the expertise of the Elia Group, a Belgian-based transmission and energy company. A Blackstone portfolio company, Viridon, has also proposed three options dubbed “Liberty Link.” — Marie J. French EYES ON NUKES: The NYSERDA board at its meeting last Monday received a short, high-level briefing on “advanced nuclear” technology and efforts by the state to engage with the federal government, industry and other states on developments. “We at NYSERDA have been actively engaged in tracking developments in advanced nuclear energy technologies over the last few years,” said Alyse Peterson, a longtime NYSERDA employee who is currently senior adviser for nuclear coordination and radioactive waste policy. “The market readiness for the technologies is accelerating rapidly and NYSERDA looks to position ourselves and New York at the forefront of this emergent energy dynamic.” Peterson outlined NYSERDA’s involvement with a multistate collaborative working on advanced nuclear generation. That collaborative, of which she is a co-chair, is working on an advanced nuclear roadmap examining issues around policy and regulations, spent fuel, workforce development, supply chain, energy independence, public engagement, construction costs, timelines and economic development. NYSERDA is also engaging in a federal working group on the nascent technology. The briefing is the latest sign of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s interest in the potential of nuclear supporting the state’s ambitious electricity system target of zero emissions by 2040. She raised the possibility at a private dinner with environmental advocates earlier this year, and one of her top officials opened the door in January to small modular reactors upstate. The Public Service Commission has included nuclear in early discussions of how to achieve the state’s 2040 target. Peterson said NYSERDA is doing a “techno-economic” analysis to support the PSC process that will examine nuclear alongside other technologies. — Marie J. French GOOD NEIGHBOR RULE BLOCKED — POLITICO’s Alex Guillén: The Supreme Court blocked the Environmental Protection Agency’s “good neighbor” rule targeting interstate smog-forming pollution on Thursday, siding with several red states and regulated industries. The high court’s stay of the rule is another blow for EPA, which has faced myriad court losses as more than a dozen states have fought back against the aggressive federal plan issued in 2023, Reg. 2060-AV51. It also raises questions about whether downwind states will meet air quality standards, possibly leading to more stringent regulatory requirements in those states. ELECTION RESULTS: The overwhelming theme of the results from Tuesday in state legislative races was the power of incumbency. Democratic Assemblymembers Didi Barrett and Michael Benedetto, who were targeted by a climate-focused political fund over the lack of progress on the NY HEAT Act, held on to their seats. So did Assemblymember Stefani Zinerman, who was also criticized over the gas transition bill and faced a Democratic Socialists of America challenger. Assemblymember Sarahana Shrestha, who has championed NY HEAT and pushed for public ownership of renewables and utilities, handily defeated a challenge from her right flank. The New York League of Conservation Voters endorsed all of the incumbents in these four races. Barrett’s and Zinerman’s races were among some of the closer non-open seat races of the night — 57 percent to 43 percent and 53 percent to 47 percent, respectively, according to the preliminary results. Barrett’s challenger, Claire Cousin, was backed by the Working Families Party and local progressive group For the Many. Cousin and For the Many took credit for Barrett signing on to support the Climate Superfund measure that passed the Assembly in the final hours of session. “We showed the Albany political machine that if they don’t start prioritizing our communities over corporate interests, we will fight for the representation we deserve,” Cousin said in a statement. “Obviously, in general, winning elections is preferred,” acknowledged John Raskin, head of the Spring Street Climate Political Fund, which spent in support of challengers in the Barrett and Benedetto races. Still, he said climate activists engaging in primaries is a useful tool to spur progress. “We have engaged a pretty broad donor base and one that we think has potential to grow,” Raskin said. “That shows that there's an appetite for translating the frustration of the climate movement about the inaction of our state government into accountability in many forms.” — Marie J. French MTA BOARD FINALLY CONVENES: Gov. Kathy Hochul boxed them in, and now they’re begrudgingly following along. The MTA board held its first meeting on Wednesday since the governor abruptly announced an “indefinite pause” to the city’s congestion pricing program without any proposed solutions to recoup the billions of dollars in toll revenue apparently now gone. Three weeks later, the toll's future remains unclear. The meeting illuminated just how bleak the fiscal and operational future of the nation’s largest transit system now looks, and that funding needed to replace the toll plan is greater than originally thought. “The accessibility impacts break my heart,” said Janno Lieber, the agency’s CEO and board chair, after it was revealed today that 23 subway stations now need to indefinitely cancel accessibility improvements. “The fact is, the MTA — it's just a reality — cannot start implementing congestion pricing without the New York State DOT signoff,” Lieber said. The meeting was a significant scene in the emotional saga that has unfolded since the governor’s surprise move. Nearly all of the MTA board members — including two of her direct appointees — expressed deep regret for Hochul’s last-minute move. They voted 10-1 to adopt a resolution promising to implement congestion pricing once the state is ready. (Only the firmly anti-congestion pricing and visibly sleepy board member David Mack voted against). “I've been working in this space for 20 years, and I truly came to believe that my role in getting congestion pricing would represent perhaps the single most important thing I could do to benefit the climate,” said Hochul-appointed board member Samuel Chu, an environmental advocate. Tim Mulligan, the agency’s deputy chief development officer, laid out the losses: $16.5 billion from the capital program will be nixed indefinitely. The toll plan was expected to bring in $1 billion annually for 15 years, and the agency will lose $1.5 billion in the cost of tolling cameras and forgone federal funding. Repairs to bridges, signal systems, procurement of hundreds of new buses and subway cars, nearly two dozen station accessibility upgrades, a $5 billion subway expansion and more projects have all been stalled indefinitely, Mulligan said. There’s also likely additional losses to the agency’s operational budget because it expected the program to boost ridership and fare revenue. But just after the meeting, Hochul issued a statement saying no one would have to worry. “This administration’s proven commitment to the MTA, as well as my record of delivering resources for critical priorities in the State budget, should provide the MTA with full confidence in future funding streams,” she said. “While the timing of the next budget may necessitate temporary adjustments to the timeline of certain contracts, there is no reason for New Yorkers to be concerned that any planned projects will not be delivered.” She did not say how she would find that funding. — Jason Beeferman SOLAR PUSH: A trade group focused on advancing solar energy use in New York is calling on the state to increase its distributed solar goal. A new report from the New York Solar Energy Industries Association lays out a roadmap to doubling the solar energy development target to 20 gigawatts by 2035. The state is currently aiming to install 10 gigawatts by 2030. Distributed solar — small-scale ground-mounted projects and rooftop installations on homes and businesses — is “one of the bright spots” of New York’s renewable energy transition, NYSEIA said. It represents more than 90 percent of the state’s current solar capacity, according to the trade group, and can fill a gap in renewable energy generation going forward. The recent wave of cancellations of high-profile utility-scale renewable projects has complicated the path to achieving statewide renewable energy mandates. Specifically, New York state is supposed to be powered with 70 percent renewable energy by 2030, but the state must more than double its renewable energy generation over the next six years to comply with that mandate, per NYSEIA. “As New York struggles to meet its ambitious renewable energy mandates, legislative leaders and regulators must take decisive action,” said Noah Ginsburg, executive director of NYSEIA. “Scaling up distributed solar deployment will deliver cost-effective progress toward New York’s overall climate goals while delivering immense benefits to New York’s environment, economy, and working families.” — Janaki Chadha THERMAL PLANS: Gov. Kathy Hochul rolled out a $10 million program Tuesday for large-scale projects that reduce emissions from heating, cooling and hot water in buildings. The program, administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, will award funding to colleges and universities, multi-family complexes, medical campuses and other large buildings or networks of buildings, officials said. “Investing in the design and deployment of clean heating and cooling systems is another part of New York’s strategy to decarbonize buildings and lower emissions across the State,” Hochul said in a statement. The deadline for proposals is Sept. 26 at 3 p.m. — Janaki Chadha | 
