NEW YORK CITY-How dire is New York City's need for new energy? What solutions are in place to encourage load curtailment and more efficient energy use? How can building owners and tenants come together on energy agreements that are satisfactory to both parties? A panel of energy experts from the public and private sectors tackled these and other issues related to the future of New York's energy markets at energy management firm Consumer Powerline's second annual "Groundhog Day" roundtable yesterday, at Morgan Stanley's Executive Conference Center.
Gil Quinones, chair of New York's Energy Task Force, provided panelists--which included members of the commercial real estate community--an update on the energy policy report issued by Mayor Michael Bloomberg in January 2004. He also spoke of the status of new power plants such as SCS Astoria Energy LLC's $1-billion, 1,000-megawatt natural power plant, which will become New York's largest new power plant in more than 25 years when it goes online this summer.
"New York City will need to add more than 6,000 megawatts to its energy grid in order to support the new development and growth projected to occur between now and 2025," Quinones told panelists. "If the peak electricity can be made more flexible we may be able to defer three large power plants."
A major piece missing from many leasing transactions is an energy financing option that balances the needs of the property owner as well as the tenant, said Marc Brammer, director of research with Innovest Strategic Value Advisors. "A property owner doesn't pay the bill so they don't have an incentive to make things efficient. The tenant isn't there long-term so they have no incentive to improve the property. That is the one thing that is missing: a statewide or federal program made into a pricing structure."
Mike Gordon, Consumer Powerline president, pointed to steam as an alternative energy method utilized recently by such entities as New York Presbyterian Hospital. Richard Miller, energy advisor with Con Edison, said that his company views the lack of government incentives for steam energy as an impediment to implementing the method, which has a high. "I understand the desire for higher incentives for steam energy but we have gone as far as we are comfortable going," said Tom Barone, program manager with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
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