Telecom Now on NYCEDC.com

New Broadband Solutions Paper Available

Release of Con Edison Steam Business Development Plan

Green Power Options in NYC

Mayor Signs Green
Building Bill

Peak Electricity Use

High Fuel Prices

Stirling Engines

Telecom Now on NYCEDC.com

Information on the activities of NYCEDC’s telecommunications group and the Telecommunications Policy Advisory Group (TPAG) has been added to the nycedc.com website. The enhanced Energy and Telecom web page provides information on the status of the implementation of the Mayor’s Telecommunications Plan, the composition and agenda for meetings of the TPAG (which advises the agencies on the Plan’s implementation), and other relevant documents. The site will also provide maps showing which areas reporting trouble getting cable modem and/or digital subscriber line service. These maps are based on surveys conducted by EDC of the six areas identified in the Plan as lacking full broadband coverage. EDC will be working with these areas to promote better coverage, as well as surveying additional industrial/manufacturing neighborhoods in the City.

New Broadband Solutions Paper Available

The Department of Small Business Services and NYCEDC have made it a priority to educate small businesses on broadband services by developing a Broadband Solutions Paper with information on types of broadband services and how to find them. The Broadband Solutions Paper will be made widely available to the small business community though the NYC Business Solutions network, which over the past year assisted in over 17,000 cases for local businesses. First, the Paper will be distributed in Business Solutions Centers throughout the five boroughs. Currently there are eight centers; up to 15 more will be added in Industrial Business Zones over the next 18 months. Second, the Paper will be available online at the Business Solutions web portal. Finally, the Business Solutions Business Outreach Team will be available to deliver the Paper "door-to-door" to businesses in specific neighborhoods.

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Release of Con Edison Steam Business Development Plan

The Con Edison Steam Business Development Task Force released a report on August 26 that outlines a business development plan for the Con Edison Steam system as well as 19 detailed recommendations for improving the system and its customer service. The Task Force was created by the New York Public Service Commission in its Steam and Gas Rate Case Order on September 27, 2004, and includes 15 individuals from local and state government, public interest, and consumer groups. NYCEDC serves as the elected chair of the Task Force.

The Con Edison Steam system is the largest district steam system in the world serving 1,800 customers below 96th street in Manhattan. In addition to the direct value provided to its customers, the steam system reduces the need for peak summer electricity by about 375 MW, benefiting all electric customers in the New York City market. The use of steam for heating and cooling, in place of natural gas and electricity, respectively, reduces the need for additional natural gas delivery infrastructure and in-City electricity.  Finally, the steam system serves as the only feasible heating option for many landmark buildings in the City that do not have space for gas boilers.

Con Edison Steam Business Development Plan Report (pdf)

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Green Power Options in NYC

Under the terms of the March 2005 Con Edison Electric Rate Case settlement, Con Edison agreed to participate in a collaborative to consider a proposal for a Green Power Program in its service territory. Four months after the first Green Power Collaborative meeting, Con Edison rolled-out the program. In the utility’s October mailings, Con Edison included a one-page insert informing customers how to purchase green power.

The new program will allow Con Edison to provide multiple options for customers to purchase green power in a manner that is consistent with the City’s goals to foster competitive energy markets. They can choose to purchase green power through an Energy Service Company (ESCO) that offers green power, such as Con Edison Solutions or Econnergy. With this option, customers will be billed for the green power through their monthly energy bill. If customers choose to continue receiving energy from Con Edison, the customer can purchase green power from a green power provider, such as Community Energy and Sterling Planet. The green power provider sends a bill separate from a customer’s monthly Con Edison bill. No matter which option customers choose, Con Edison will continue to deliver the energy to their homes and will respond to service emergencies.

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Mayor Signs Green Building Bill

On October 3, 2005, the Mayor signed Local Law #86 of 2005, also referred to as the green building law, which sets green building standards for certain capital projects. The law will go into effect on January 1, 2007. This legislation will affect approximately $10 billion in construction, including $5 billion in new schools, over the City’s 10-year capital plan. The law requires most new and substantially renovated City buildings costing more than $2 million to be built according to the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building standard or other equally stringent standard. The bill also includes the following requirements:

• New construction and major renovation projects that cost more than $12 million must reduce energy use by 20 percent beyond what is required under the State Energy Conservation Code.
• Non-school construction projects costing more than $30 million must reduce energy use by 25 percent over the State code.
• If the expected payback year for the energy efficiency investments into a project is less than ten years, the project is required to reduce energy use by another 5-10 percent.
• Plumbing projects costing more than $500,000 must reduce water use by 20-30 percent.

In addition to City buildings, the bill applies to any capital projects of non-City agencies that are funded by the City, provided the City is contributing at least $10 million or 50 percent of cost of the project.

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Peak Electricity Use

On July 27, 2005, Con Edison recorded a record peak electricity demand of 13,059 MW. In addition to record peak demand during this exceptionally hot summer, Con Edison also broke records for weekday single day consumption and summertime hourly gas usage. These levels were recorded during a heat wave the week of July 27. The new single-day power consumption record reached 260,095 megawatt hours and the new summertime hourly gas usage record of 55,690 dekatherms, surpassing the record set one day earlier. The new high for monthly electricity send-out–the cumulative amount of energy used by customers—was 6,395,843 megawatt hours.

Other records experienced this summer include the most electricity used in a single month, highest consecutive weekday electricity consumption, most electricity used over a weekend, the highest peak demand for a Saturday and for a Sunday, seven of the top 10 days of most electricity used, and the five highest days of peak demand and eight of the top 10 peak days. In addition to the unusually hot weather, growth in the economy, population, and use of personal electronic devices contributed to the record energy demand and usage. In 2004, the city issued about 19% more building permits in 2004 than in the previous year. According to Con Ed, its customers used more than eight million television, 10.5 million cell phones and 2.5 million personal computers in 2004, and the numbers are rising. Con Edison expects an additional 900,000 air conditioning units are expected to be installed over the next five years.

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High Fuel Prices

Natural gas is the fuel of choice for electricity generation due to its relatively low emissions, and it is used by 50% of New Yorkers for home heating. Given the hurricane damage in the critical Gulf of Mexico gas producing region this year, prices are expected to rise, possibly sharply, during the upcoming peak winter heating season. Natural gas commodity is not subject to price regulation at the state or federal level, and its cost is therefore determined by market forces. The New York Public Service Commission and regulated utilities such as Con Edison and KeySpan have available public education materials on methods to reduce household gas usage. In addition, a number of State legislative and regulatory actions are expected this year to attempt to reduce the impact of rising natural gas prices, particularly for low- and fixed-income households.

Fuel oil used for home heating, like other petroleum products, has seen recent price spikes, and is sometimes subject to supply constraints during the winter as its availability can be affected by severe weather. The principal production areas for heating oil are in the Gulf of Mexico region, and due to reduced production and refinery capacity, market prices for the period through February of 2006 reflect a projected wholesale Gulf price ranging up to $1.94 per gallon. The New York Harbor price will be somewhat higher due to transportation costs and retail margins, which will mean additional costs for homeowners. Weather conditions are the largest single variable affecting prices, and homeowners who are dependent on heating oil should consider locking in prices with their suppliers to avoid mid-winter price shocks, or even lack of availability.

Information on strategies for reducing energy use:
Con Edison Energy Savings
Keyspan Energy Info and Tips
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority

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Stirling Engines

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is no stranger to piloting new technologies. Eight fuel cells are installed at four of the fourteen wastewater pollution control plants. These fuel cells have produced so far this year a total of 6,459,522 kWh of clean energy while consuming 63, 121,599 cubic feet of digester gas. Next, DEP is piloting the Stirling cycle engine. The project, which will use engines produced by STM Stirling, will be one of the first applications of this technology in the U.S. Indeed, the DEP Bureau of Wastewater Treatment in cooperation with the New York Power Authority will install, later this year, three (3) 55 KW Stirling engines at the Owls Head wastewater pollution control plant. More importantly, the Stirling engines will be powered by the excess digester gas that would have otherwise been flared. Digester gas is produced at the plant as a byproduct of the wastewater treatment process.

The Stirling engine, which was invented in the early 1800's by a Scottish minister, has only reached commercial production in the last couple of years. The STM Stirling model is a 4-cylinder external combustion engine, in which a reciprocating motion of pistons is induced by compressing and expanding hydrogen gas, sealed inside each cylinder. In this system, products of combustion never come into contact with any precision moving parts or lubricants. As a result, the engine maintenance and fuel preparation requirements are relatively low. The engine has 50% fewer moving parts than an internal combustion engine, and a fraction of its emissions. The STM engine system has been designed to achieve 30% net electrical efficiency, although it is also designed to achieve up to 80% total system efficiency in a combined heat and power (CHP) mode. It is capable of continuous operation with simple maintenance at 10,000 hour intervals. Stirling engines have lower operation and maintenance costs, higher electric output, and are currently significantly less expensive than fuel cells.

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