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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, January 13, 2025
Contact: Lee Ziesche, info@publicpowerny.org, 954-415-6228

Report: Massive Buildout of Renewables in NYC is Possible and Necessary 

Paper from Public Power NY Makes Case for New York Power Authority to Build 5 Gigawatts of Distributed Energy Resources Downstate  


NYPA NYC Position PaperDownload

New York, New York – A new paper shows the massive potential to build renewable energy projects in New York City and calls on the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to step up and build at least 5 gigawatts (GW). 

The passage of the Build Public Renewables Act (BPRA) in 2023 unleashed NYPA to build and own renewable energy and New Yorkers, labor and legislators have called on the authority to build 15GW statewide to ensure that New York meets its legally mandated climate targets of 70% renewables by 2030. NYPA, under the leadership of controversial CEO Justin Driscoll, has proposed to build a paltry 3.5GW, with very few projects planned for the Hudson Valley and downstate New York, where electricity demand is greatest.

The report has three parts:

  1. Lays out the technical, economic, and public health rationale for an ambitious NYPA buildout of distributed energy resource (DER) projects in New York City. 
  2. Details available land in NYC that could host DER projects, including CUNY, NYCHA and brownfield locations. 
  3. Explores the potential for NYPA to build large scale geothermal projects in NYC to support decarbonization and electrification goals.

The Public Power NY Coalition released the following statement:

“NYPA has the power to create thousands of union jobs with gold standard labor protections, lower utility bills for New Yorkers who need it the most, and shut super-polluting fossil fuel peaker plants. All that’s lacking in this moment is the political will. Governor Hochul can do far more than send prayers to families in California whose lives have been destroyed by climate chaos. New York can lead the nation by building 15GW of public renewables, getting us back on track to meet our climate targets and creating a model for other states to follow.” 

Advocates will be closely watching Governor Hochul’s State of the State Address to see if she listens to the over 5,300 public comments submitted calling for NYPA to build 15GW. 

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Note to the editor:

About Public Power NY

Public Power NY is a movement fighting to ensure New York effectively carries out the Build Public Renewables Act by building 15 Gigawatts of public renewables by 2030. Hailed as the first statewide Green New Deal law, BPRA was written by PPNY and passed in 2023 thanks to four years of organizing by a multiracial, multi-generational movement of climate and advocacy organizations, labor unions representing millions of New Yorkers and tens of thousands of New Yorkers who have taken action from upstate, downstate, and everywhere in between. With federal climate action off the table, BPRA has enabled NY to not just play defense against Trump, but lead the way the way FDR created NYPA to do.