New York State Takes Top Spot for U.S. Community Solar Development

Gov. Kathy Hochul has revealed that New York has become the top community solar market in the United States, with more than 1 GW of community solar installed and operational – enough to serve 209,000 homes across the state.

New York also has the largest project pipeline in the nation, with enough community solar under construction to serve an additional 401,000 homes.

“Reaching this nation-leading milestone – with more than 1 GW of community solar installed – is a testament to New York’s aggressive pursuit of clean-energy alternatives that will supercharge our economy and bring us one step closer to a carbon-neutral future,” Hochul states. “New York is once again making clean energy history, and with many families facing the burden of rising energy costs, my administration remains committed to expanding access to solar energy, which will deliver savings and stabilize electricity bills while meeting our aggressive climate goals.”

“Over 1 GW of progress was made today, enough to power over 200,000 homes across New York State,” says Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin. “When we think about the future of our state, we must think about both the economic prosperity we aim for in addition to the welfare of our children. Now, when those future generations of New Yorkers look toward today, they’ll know progress was made with them in mind. I’m proud to announce today that New York is the capital of solar power in the United States.”

The announcement was made in Schenectady County at a 7.5 MW community solar project that is paired with 10 MWh of energy storage on the site of a former landfill. Located in the town of Glenville, the project was developed by DSD Renewables, which is also the owner and operator of the project. The site is part of a seven-project, 25 MW portfolio made possible through a collaboration with the Schenectady County Solar Energy Consortium.

Community solar made up 70% of total solar installations across the state in 2021. In addition, New York’s distributed solar pipeline is now comprised of more than 708 of these projects totaling 2,300 MW. This pipeline is complemented by 73 New York State-supported utility-scale solar projects under development throughout the state.

The achievement of this milestone has been underpinned by robust support from NYSERDA‘s NY-Sun program, the state’s signature $1.8 billion initiative to advance the scale-up of solar while driving costs down and making solar energy more accessible to homes, businesses, and communities. Currently, installed distributed solar projects, combined with the projects that are under development, bring the State to 95% of the current Climate Act goal to install six gigawatts of distributed solar by 2025.

Read the full release and more statements here.

Original Source: https://solarindustrymag.com/new-york-state-takes-top-spot-for-community-solar-development-in-the-u-s