renewable energy

This project, which originated from Gov. Paterson's Renewable Energy Task Force, could provide significant market development benefits to the wind industry, create clean-tech jobs, and help diversify the State's electricity system, according to a prepared statement. "In addition, any project resulting from this work could demonstrate that we can meet the State's energy supply needs in an environmentally sound manner while benefiting the State's economy by reducing dependence on imported energy."

The Governor's Renewable Energy Task Force was created to identify barriers to increased production of renewable energy, recommending policies and financial incentives to overcome those barriers, and identify future markets where additional research and development investment is necessary. The Task Force issued its first report in February 2007, which contained several recommendations for increasing the State's renewable energy supply, including this project.

The State did not return GlobeSt.com queries for further information or projected costs of the potential project. A Long Island Power Authority spokesman tells GlobeSt.com that there are no projected costs associated with this project. He explains that the LIPA and Con Edison "will study the technical and economic feasibility for a wind project that could benefit the service territory of both utilities."

"Given the world's limited fossil energy resources, we strive to meet the ever increasing demand for energy, we must look for ways to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and grasp every opportunity to study the use of clean and renewable forms of energy," says Gov. Paterson, in the statement. "Our state and country are facing massive budget shortfalls, Wall Street is suffering, and New York's residents are being forced to make tough financial decisions everyday."

The Governor continues that the project "has the potential to bring investments in clean and renewable energy technologies and create clean-tech 'green collar' jobs. The partnership between LIPA and ConEd could provide New Yorkers with a cleaner, brighter future, and I look forward to the conclusion of this project."

The working group will study suitable locations for an offshore wind project, transmission and interconnection capabilities, and the availability of wind as an energy source. Several years ago, LIPA had proposed the construction of a 40-turbine wind farm that would have produced 140 megawatts of energy off the shore of Jones Beach. The project was ultimately shelved by LIPA when it was discovered that costs substantially exceeded what was originally anticipated. Had the project moved forward, those costs would have been borne solely by LIPA customers, the statement says. "The economies of scale would now dictate that an offshore wind project would have to be larger and farther out to sea than the one previously considered by LIPA. New offshore wind turbine technologies allow for the citing of facilities much further into the ocean than was possible just a few short years ago."

Kevin Law, president and CEO of LIPA, says in the statement that "while there is plenty of wind power upstate, there is a transmission bottleneck that makes it difficult to get it to New York City and Long Island…" He adds that "we need to do some planning to see if offshore wind makes sense downstate."

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State Further Explores Offshore Wind Project

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