SOURCE:
https://www.wwlp.com/news/psc-cancels-new-york-power-line-project-for-offshore-wind-energy/amp/
Johan Sheridan - July 17, 2025
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — New York’s Public Service Commission decided on Thursday to stop the project that would bring offshore wind power to New York City. They said that their decision would protect New Yorkers from paying for expensive power lines that might not be needed soon.
This means that the PSC is cancelling its Public Policy Transmission Need determination. Made in 2023, the PPTN determination called for new power lines to deliver at least 4,770 megawatts of offshore wind energy to New York City by 2033.
“One of our most important tasks is to protect consumers,” said PSC chair Rory Christian. “We will continue to press forward regarding infrastructure needs for offshore wind in the future once the federal government resumes leasing and permitting for wind energy generation projects.”
The New York Independent System Operator manages the state’s electric grid. After starting the search for companies to build such power lines on April 4, 2024, they got 28 proposals from four different companies that ranged from $7.9 billion to $23.9 billion.
But President Donald Trump issued an executive order in January to stop construction on or any new permits for offshore wind. It also ordered a review of existing wind energy leases. The PSC decided that Trump’s order makes it impossible to reach New York’s offshore wind goals in the near future and eliminates any reason for building new power lines in the first place.
The PSC concluded that it’s too risky to make New Yorkers pay billions for power lines that won’t be used for years.
On Wednesday, the day before the PSC decision, several organizations published a letter written to Christian. That coalition—including the Alliance for Clean Energy New York, the New York Offshore Wind Alliance, the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, the City of New York, ConEd, Orange and Rockland Utilities, Con Edison Transmission, Equinor Wind, Hitachi Energy USA, and the New York Power Authority—asked the PSC not to wait to decide on the PPTN until NYISO finishes a full cost-benefit analysis.
They pointed out the ongoing need for the power lines connecting to offshore wind, the importance of reliable power, and potential costs of further delays. They argued in the letter—available to read at the bottom of this story—that the federal pause on wind farm permits wouldn’t apply to transmission lines.
Chris Casey, Utility Regulatory Director for New York at the Natural Resources Defense Council, called the decision deeply disappointing and a missed opportunity. He said that the PSC conducted studies that proved the urgent need for new wind power lines into New York City, opining on the limited space for new cables in New York Harbor because of physical and regulatory logistics.
NRDC wants the state to finish the NYISO review, pick the best project, and seek approvals to move forward quickly once federal barriers inevitably fall. According to Casey, a power line connecting several offshore wind farms to the city is “one of the only viable pathways for advancing the state’s climate mandates in downstate regions and reducing reliance on fossil fuel power plants that are polluting the air, harming the climate, and disproportionately burdening low-income communities and communities of color.”
The New York League of Conservation Voters was similarly crestfallen. They want New York to increase its commitment to clean energy, not slow it down, especially before a federal government that “continues to undermine progress on clean energy.” Without new power lines, they said, the state will fail on clean energy goals and will ultimately cost more overall, in the long run.
“By kicking the can now, we’re risking falling behind in our clean energy transition and driving up costs in the future,” read the statement from NYCLV. They argued that continuing the transmission plan would give developers and communities the certainty of cleaner, more reliable energy sources.
The energy company Viridon New York agreed, warning that hesitation will send a bad message across the market and make sure the state falls short of renewable energy goals. They argued that the NYC PPTN offered a benefit by separating the development of power lines from the development of wind farms.
Viridon estimated the near-term costs for planning and permitting the PPTN at a few hundred million dollars over the first four years, which represents “as little as 1% of the tens of billions in capital investment that will ultimately be needed to construct at least 4,770 MW of offshore wind and deliver it to New York City.”
The PSC said they’re still committed to clean energy goals and will work with NYISO and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to find new solutions that are affordable and reliable. They will include these ideas in the next Clean Energy Standard Biennial Review slated for 2026.
The original 2023 determination was supposed to meet climate goals of 9 gigawatts from wind by 2035. But according to the PSC, without certainty from the feds, they can’t know what design or plans to use for the power lines. They couldn’t set an in-service date, making cost estimates murky and risky.
Here’s the letter sent to the PSC on Wednesday:
