New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on April 18 announced that the New York State Public Service Commission is launching a proceeding under which PSC staff will engage with stakeholders to develop a comprehensive New York Grid of the Future plan.
The plan will establish targets for the deployment of flexible resources such as virtual power plants and identify the utility investments needed to enable the grid of the future.
The proceeding will begin with the development of a grid flexibility study, where PSC staff will estimate the current and future potential capabilities of flexible resources across New York’s electric grid.
The study will also identify near-term actions likely to increase the deployment and use of flexible resources and the improved integration of flexible resources into grid planning and grid operations.
Upon completion of the study, PSC staff will finalize the inaugural New York Grid of the Future Plan, which must be filed by December 31, 2024.
The plan will leverage the grid flexibility study to identify clear and actionable resource deployment goals and will establish key policies that include improved utility planning processes, new forms of compensation for customers who provide flexibility services, advancements in smart grid technologies, physical and cyber security protocols and most importantly, opportunities for customer savings and benefits.
The PSC noted that staff will file an updated plan by no later than December 31, 2025, following a robust stakeholder engagement process that examines the initial plan and the grid flexibility study.
Subsequent and periodic updates to the plan are expected to ensure that customer-benefiting levels of flexible services are enabled as the grid needs and capabilities continue to evolve.
