Technical analysis by Electric Power Research Institute finds that smarter grid management could nearly double Upstate community solar hosting capacity and ease energy storage integration in Con Edison territory​

 

A new study released by New York Solar Energy Industries Association (NYSEIA) finds that flexible interconnection could unlock billions of dollars in economic value, avoid costly electric grid infrastructure upgrades, and accelerate the deployment of affordable clean energy across New York State.​

 

The report was developed by NYSEIA in collaboration with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and New York Battery Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST), with funding support from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) under Program Opportunity Notice 4393 Electric Power Transmission and Distribution Future Grid Challenges.​

 

EPRI's technical and economic analysis demonstrates that New York can connect substantially more community solar and energy storage to its existing electric grid without expensive, time-consuming traditional substation capital projects.​ Flexible interconnection uses advanced monitoring and controls to adjust solar generation or battery charging/discharging when the electric distribution system is constrained.

 

Flexible interconnection enables utilities to use existing infrastructure more efficiently while maintaining safe and reliable operations as a cost-effective alternative to building costly infrastructure to accommodate infrequent periods of peak demand or generation. ​For this study, EPRI analyzed data from 1,115 utility substations across New York State and conducted hourly simulations of representative substations and distributed energy projects to evaluate the technical and economic potential of flexible interconnection. Key findings include:​

​​

• Up to 97% more solar hosting capacity: Flexible interconnection could increase Upstate New York's community solar hosting capacity by 71% to 97%.​​

​

• Billions in avoided costs: Adding the same amount of incremental community solar capacity using traditional methods would cost approximately $7.4-7.9 billion more than the flexible solution.​​

​

• Major energy storage opportunity: In Con Edison's service territory, flexible interconnection could increase cost-effective battery storage hosting capacity by up to 174%–274% in comparison to current methods.​This publication is the first statewide study quantifying the opportunity for flexible interconnection across New York.

​

In addition to evaluating technical and economic potential, the study identifies implementation considerations for utilities, policymakers and other stakeholders. The implementation recommendations are timely – in 2026, both National Grid and Avangrid requested approval to expand their successful flexible interconnection pilots to additional substations, and the legislature and Governor directed the New York State Public Service Commission to work with the electric utilities and stakeholders to advance a statewide flexible interconnection framework as part of the Accelerate Solar for Affordable Power (ASAP) Act. 

​

Download the full report below, view the webinar recording, or download the one-page summary.