New Yorkers’ Clean Energy Investments Contribute to Grid Reliability in 2024, Hottest Year in History
As 2024 breaks the record for the world’s warmest year in history, Con Edison recognizes its customers’ participation in renewable energy and efficiency programs as a factor in its nation-leading reliability. These programs, combined with the company’s work to upgrade infrastructure to mitigate the effects of climate change, helped reduce energy peaks, impacts to the environment, and costs.
The third quarter Clean Energy Update which includes July, August and September, typically the hottest months of the year, shows customers produce 647 megawatts of solar energy capacity with more than 72,500 solar installations completed. That’s five times more energy than needed to power Times Square.
“Our customers’ continued investment in clean energy and energy-efficient solutions eased electric demand as 2024 is on track to be the hottest year in history. Their efforts help us keep the power flowing,” said Tim Cawley, the chairman and CEO of Con Edison. “As New Yorkers transition to electrification of building space heating and transportation, we’ve made it easier to install EV chargers and continue to provide incentives for heat pump installation. We are delivering infrastructure investments to build the grid of the future while providing industry-leading reliability to millions of customers.”
Clean Energy Initiatives
Reliable Clean City (RCC) Projects
The RCC projects in Queens, Staten Island and Brooklyn, which will add 900 megawatts of transmission capacity across New York City, are advancing on schedule.
Lowering Emissions
Through the third quarter of this year, the company’s Main Replacement Program has retired or replaced 54 miles of leak-prone pipe reducing methane emissions.
Prioritizing Affordability
This quarter, Con Edison distributed more than $67.6 million in bill discounts to its low-income electric customers and $13.5 million to low-income gas customers through its Energy Affordability Program. Year-to-date, low-income electric customers received more than $201 million in electric bill discounts and $40 million to low-income gas customers.
Customer Initiatives
Con Edison customers continue to choose solar, battery storage, electric vehicles and chargers, and clean heat options when making decisions about technologies that work best for them.
Solar Generation
Customers continue to choose solar panels to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels, and energy costs.
Westchester County, Queens and Staten Island customers are the top three solar energy producers.
Many solar customers can zero out their energy bills and even earn bill credits by exporting their excess energy back to Con Edison. In the third quarter, more than 41,000 solar customers reduced had a least one of their monthly bills to zero usage.
Battery Storage
Con Edison customers installed 58 megawatts of storage capacity through the third quarter.
Westchester customers led the region with 631 of the 696 battery storage projects with the capacity to store 14 megawatts of power.
Con Edison continues to work with state and local partners to make it easier for customers to install solar and battery storage projects.
Electric Vehicles & Charging
Con Edison’s PowerReady program has provided incentives for more than 9,000 Level 2 and 450 DC Fast chargers. Of the charging plugs installed, 3,725 chargers are in disadvantaged communities and 2,210 are publicly accessible.
Every EV that replaces a gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicle means cleaner air for local communities and less greenhouse gas emissions fueling climate change.
More than 35 percent of Con Edison’s light duty passenger vehicle are now electric with a goal of 80 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2035.
Clean Heat
Of the 7,993 pumps installed through the third quarter of this year, more than 7,826 were air source heat pumps. Ground source heat pumps were a distant second with 104 installations, followed by 63 heat pump water heaters.
The Clean Heat program offers incentives for customers who replace their fossil-fuel powered HVAC systems and water heaters with heat pumps. Heat pumps move energy from the air or stored in the earth to provide heating and cooling.
Con Edison is a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. [NYSE: ED], one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy companies, with approximately $15 billion in annual revenues for the year-end 2023 and $69 billion in assets as of September 30, 2024. The utility delivers electricity, natural gas, and steam, and serves 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County. For financial, operations, and customer service information, visit conEd.com.