New York City will replace its largest fossil fuel plant with wind power, in a US first

New York City’s largest fossil-fuel plant, which powers 20% of the city, will be replaced with offshore wind power. 

Ravenswood Generating Station is the New York City fossil fuel plant that will become an offshore wind hub. It’s a 2,480-megawatt (MW) power plant in Long Island City, Queens, across from Roosevelt Island, and it’s the Big Apple’s largest power plant.

Rise Light & Power, a New York based energy asset manager and developer that holds Ravenswood as its core asset, is submitting a proposal today, with support from community and state leaders, to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) in response to the state’s offshore wind solicitation.

Here’s how it will work

In a nutshell, the 27-acre waterfront oil and gas industrial site is going to be converted into a clean energy hub that will power one-fifth of New York City with offshore wind power.

The Ravenswood offshore wind project will reuse existing physical and electrical infrastructure, and that’s going to save New York ratepayers money.

An HVDC conductor cable will be brought onshore at the existing power plant site. The cable will interconnect via underground HVAC cables to the NYISO bulk electric system at existing substations adjacent to the site.

It will also become an offshore wind operations and maintenance hub that will support the just transition of the existing fossil fuel plant workforce, and drive economic investment into a historically underserved community. 

Rise Light & Power states that the project will, with training programs and job opportunities, justly transition and upskill Ravenswood’s current Local 1-2 UWUA union workers.

US congresswoman Nydia Velázquez (NY-7) said:

America’s first renewable repowering of a fossil-fuel burning plant can happen right here in Long Island City, Queens, home to the city’s largest power generating facility. This project would greatly advance our state’s climate goals and be a win for environmental justice communities living nearby.

I believe that the repowering of the Ravenswood Generating Station can serve as a model for the rest of the country as we work to cut our dependence on fossil fuels while also providing a just transition for residents and workers.

Ditching fossil fuels is also going to improve the air quality in Western Queens, which has a higher asthma rate. In fact, it’s known as “Asthma Alley,” so unsurprisingly, this impactful change has strong community support.

Read more: New York City is buying 925 EVs – here’s what’s included

Photo: Rise Light & Power

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