Eastern Generation shutting oil-fired power in New York City, adding battery storage

Independent power producer Eastern Generation said it plans to retire oil-burning peaker plants and build battery storage projects providing over 350 MW of storage capacity at three existing generating stations in New York City.

"Eastern Generation is well positioned to assist in the transition to a carbon free future, while continuing to provide a safe and reliable electric system," Mark Sudbey, Eastern Generation's CEO, said in a Dec. 16 statement.

"We are prepared to help meet zero carbon goals," he said, adding "our actions today are part of this larger effort as we look at our existing sites and beyond to help reimagine a safe, reliable power supply."

The company owns electric generating stations that account for nearly 18% of New York City's power generation capacity, according to the statement.

The first storage project, which filed for authorization at the New York Public Service Commission, is planned to be located at the Astoria Generating Station and will provide 135 MW of energy storage.

Eastern Generation also said that it is withdrawing an application previously submitted to the New York State Siting Board to repower the Gowanus Generating Station on the Brooklyn waterfront with new gas turbines so that it may effectively proceed with energy storage development at the site.

Additionally, the company will file with the NYPSC and the New York Independent System Operator to retire two oil-only power barges at Gowanus as soon as November 2022, six months ahead of the scheduled May 2023 closure mandated by state regulations, Eastern Generation said.

"Eastern Generation has been actively engaging clean energy developers from the emerging offshore wind and green transmission sectors over the last three years and is completing a transaction for the sale of its retired No. 6 fuel oil tank yard at the Astoria facility to a developer of a clean energy project, enabling the delivery of over 1,200 MW of renewable energy to New York City," the company said.

Project details

The first energy storage facility will be called the Luyster Creek Energy Storage Project and it will be located at the existing Astoria Generating Station in Astoria, Queens.

The project is comprised of two distinct installations with four-hour batteries and a total capacity of 135 MW or 540 MWh, according to the PSC petition.

Astoria Generating Company, an Eastern Generation subsidiary, owns and operates three power plants in New York City: the Astoria Generating Station and the Gowanus and Narrows Generating Stations, both located in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, which have an aggregate summer net capacity rating of 1,787.7 MW and a winter net capacity rating of 2,039.4 MW.

AGC estimates total costs of the project at approximately $300 million and expects to finance those costs through a combination of equity and debt, according to the petition.

The company told the PSC that the proposed project advances New York State's goals for greenhouse gas emissions reduction and renewable energy expansion mandated by the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act that requires the state to install 3,000 MW of energy storage capacity by 2030.

According to recommendations made to the New York State Climate Action Council, the transition to a carbon-free power grid by 2040 as mandated in the CLCPA will require levels of energy storage that could exceed 15 GW and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority has found that by 2040, 7.3 GW of storage capacity will need to be located in New York City and on Long Island, the petition said.