New York’s power grid is under pressure as industrial advancements are made across the state and the way people use power is changing. That’s why the state is working to increase capacity and reduce congestion. On Monday, the New York State Power Authority and National Grid celebrated major progress toward that goal.
What You Need To Know
Smart Path Connect is a transmission project meant to strengthen New York’s electric grid
The project will not only enhance reliability, but can save residential ratepayers one dollar per month on their bills
The project is part of a Upstate Upgrades, which has 70 more projects planned to enhance New York’s grid
“New York is actively rebuilding and reinforcing our grid so that it is capable of serving the modern economy,” Sean Ewart said, the deputy secretary for Energy.
Smart Path Connect is a major part of that transformation.
State officials saythe 100-mile transmission project brings upgrades to existing infrastructure while improving reliability, reducing grid congestion and expanding access to clean energy sources and ultimately enabling the flow of more power.
“We’re adding one gigawatt of capacity to the grid with this energization,” New York Power Authority’s President and CEO Justin Driscoll said. “We’re also enabling the unbottling of clean energy that previously could not get where it needed to go because it couldn’t get out of the North Country where the projects were built.”
The project, which broke ground in 2022, is part of a broader Upstate Upgrade program, consisting of more than 70 transmission projects across the state.
Rich Dewey, who oversees the grid’s reliability as the president and CEO of New York Independent System Operator, says these projects are imperative.
“At this point in time, our reliability of our system is coming under tremendous pressure because of these very rapid changes going on and tremendous growth,” Dewey said.
That pressure is from the demand outpacing the supply.
“We see energy demand changing in New York, we see industry growing, manufacturing growing, and changing the way that people are consuming energy,” National Grid New York’s President Sally Librera said.
Smart Path Connect will also deliver more than $438 million in savings to customers annually.
National Grid and Power Authority officials say that breaks down to about one dollar in savings per household per month.
“We’re not just building things for the sake of building things,” National Grid Spokesperson Jared Paventi said, “We’re building them to make energy more affordable, to make energy more reliable for them to use each day.”
With more projects planned, officials say the grid’s future is bright.
“We’re proud to be delivering the power future of New York,” Librera said. “We’re proud to be enabling the economic development that is coming and is here with the state and we are very much looking forward to the next stage of upstate Upgrade and New York’s energy future.”
New York’s power grid will operate on its smallest-ever surplus capacity this summer, according to a report from the New York State Independent System Operator.