New York Commission Approves Retail and Residential Programs to Progress Toward Energy Storage Target of 6 Gigawatts by 2030

The New York Public Service Commission on Feb. 13 approved the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s energy storage implementation plan for the retail and residential sectors.

The commission directed the authority to amend the plan to incorporate more energy resources that are a part of the New York Independent System Operator’s distributed energy resources program under the retail section of the plan. The commission is currently reviewing an implementation plan for bulk energy storage initiatives.

An order issued in June 2024 approved a new framework for the state to achieve its updated goal 6 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 – double the initial target set in 2019 – and authorized funds to support a buildout of storage deployments estimated to reduce projected future statewide electric system costs by nearly $2 billion. The order also set a 2030 target of achieving 1.5 GW of retail energy storage and 200 megawatts (MW) of residential energy.The roadmap details an extensive list of strategies to expand energy storage facilities in New York, improve grid resilience, and efficiently integrate renewable energy into the grid system.

Increased energy storage capacity is critical for New York’s energy transition as it enables the addition of large quantities of renewable energy into the grid. The initiatives outlined in the roadmap could procure an additional 4.7 GW of new storage across bulk, residential, and retail energy sectors. Currently, the state has 1.3 GW of energy storage projects being procured or under contract with the state. New York has provided about $200 million to fund 396 MW of operational facilities included in the current 1.3 GW goal.