Renewable Portfolio Standard Program Project Gallery

Below you will find information on just some of the many projects involved in the NY RPS program.Maps and details about every project can be found in the most recent program performance report.

Maple Ridge Wind Farm

Through the RPS program, NYSERDA has supported the construction of one of the largest wind farms east of the Mississippi River, the 321 MW Maple Ridge Wind Farm in Lewis County, NY.  NYSERDA’s 10-year contract supported the first phase of the project (231 MW), which allowed project owners Iberdrola Renewables and Horizon Wind Energy to expand the project scope to 321 MW.  This project supported hundreds of jobs throughout construction and now employs local operators, provides income to farmers and taxes to local schools and municipalities, while at the same time displacing our need for generation from fossil fuel sources such as coal and natural gas.  NYSERDA estimates that the economic benefits to New York from the Maple Ridge Wind Farm alone may approach $190 million over the next 20 years.

Photo Courtesy of Horizon Wind Energy/IBERDROLA RENEWABLES Inc.           

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Higley Hydroelectric Station

The 6.2 MW Higley hydroelectric station is located on the Lower Raquette River in St. Lawrence County, NY.  Owned by Brookfield Power New York, it underwent a major re-powering in 2003-04, including the construction of a new intake, penstocks, powerhouse, and high efficiency generation equipment, resulting in an increase in output from approximately 4.5 MW to 6.2 MW.   NYSERDA’s 10-year contract supports this nearly 33% increase in electric generation, which is enough to power more than 1,700 average homes annually.

Photo Courtesy of Brookfield Power

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Niagara Generating Facility

The Niagara Generating Facility, a 54 MW power plant located in Niagara County, NY, has recently undergone modification in order to co-fire biomass fuel together with coal, pet-coke and tire-derived fuel.   The owner, US Renewables Group, plans to produce nearly half of the plant’s electric output with biomass fuel instead of traditionally less environmentally friendly fossil fuels such as coal.  NYSERDA’s 10-year contract will support the use of cleaner-burning fuel in this existing facility, while adding new jobs at the plant and with local fuel suppliers.

Photo courtesy of Niagara Generation

The RPS program also supports smaller renewable energy projects that are located at the customer’s site. The installation of solar photovoltaics (PV), anaerobic digesters, fuel cells, and small wind turbines are supported with a combination of capacity- and performance-based incentive payments. These open enrollment programs are funded initially through the end of 2009.  The programs are designed not just to provide financial incentives but to build and strengthen the network of installers of these technologies.

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Anaerobic Digester Gas-to-Electricity Program

The Anaerobic Digester Gas-to-Electricity Program is designed to provide incentives to the agricultural, industrial, and municipal sectors to support the purchase, installation, and operation of anaerobic digester gas-to-electricity systems in New York State.  The overall goals of the program are to fund 3.7 MW of capacity and 25,700 MWh of annual generation by the end of 2009.  In anaerobic digestion, methane is recovered from animal manure, food waste, or industrial/municipal wastewater.  Besides the production of electricity from the recovered methane gas (a potent greenhouse gas if released unburned to the atmosphere), anaerobic digestion also offers the benefits of odor control, reduced run-off of agricultural nutrients into water supplies, and reduced waste disposal costs. 


Over the past 20 years the Gloversville-Johnstown area has experienced a dramatic change in its industrial base; recently, however, the trend is reversing with the construction and marketing of industrial parks that are providing a diverse employment portfolio.  The recent additions of Euphrates Cheese and the FAGE yogurt company will require significant wastewater treatment capacity.  The Gloversville-Johnstown Joint Wastewater Treatment Facility has recently invested more than $3 million for improvements to accommodate these waste streams; additional significant capital investment in the facility is required, including the conversion of the existing two-stage anaerobic digesters to contact anaerobic digesters.  Once implemented, biogas generation at the plant will increase substantially.  It is estimated that enough biogas will be produced to power two 350-kW engine-generators, which will provide the facility with 100% of its electrical power, and will save the facility $400,000 annually.

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Photovoltaic (PV) Program

NYSERDA’s PV Incentive Program has created a market for PV systems in NYS by providing incentives to eligible installers, who pass the savings on to the customers. Installers must have training and experience to become eligible. About 40% are nationally certified through NABCEP. About 85% of the installations funded are for single-family homes; the balance is about equally distributed among larger commercial, not-for-profit, and multi-family facilities. The clean energy that is generated is provided at peak times, which reduces system-wide demand and improves the reliability of the electric grid. There are also strong economic and environmental impacts, since PV replaces fossil-fueled peaking generators, which are typically the least efficient and least environmentally friendly form of power generation. The overall goal of the program is to fund 3.5 MW of capacity and 4,533 MWh of annual generation by the end of 2009. 

Town of White Creek, Washington County.  This 4.14 kW Solar DC array was installed by GroSolar. Thirty-six 115-watt solar Evergreen panels were installed on the roof of this passive solar home. In its first year of operation, the solar panels produced 4,221 kW of electricity – 38 percent of the electricity used by the owners.

Photo courtesy of Bob Somers

Wappingers Falls, NY   This residential PV system, installed by Hudson Valley Clean Energy, is located in the Town of Lagrange, Dutchess County.  It includes 40 Sharp 175-watt modules, 8 per pole, and a Sunny Boy 6000 inverter.  The system generates about 90 percent of the annual electricity used by the homeowners. 

Photo courtesy of Hudson Valley Clean Energy

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Small Wind Program

Similar to the PV incentive program, NYSERDA’s Small Wind Incentive Program provides incentives for customer-sited wind turbines to eligible installers, who pass the savings on to their customers.  Incentive levels vary depending on the size of wind generation system, the tower height, and the type of customer (farms, municipal and county governments, not-for-profit facilities, and schools receive higher incentives).  The overall goal of the program is to fund 1.8 MW of capacity and 3,945 MWh of annual generation by the end of 2009. 



Forestville, NY   This Bergey WindPower turbine was installed by Bergey WindPower on an 88-acre cattle and horse farm in Chautauqua County. With an annual energy output of 12,000 kW hours, the percentage of electrical use offset by the wind system is 50%. 

Photo courtesy of Bergey Windpower Company and Michael and Shaun Lord

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