If Hurricane Sandy, during which millions of New Yorkers
lost power and damage to the electric grid was substantial, was the spark that
ignited New York’s “Reforming the Energy Vision, aka REV” then perhaps
Hurricane Maria will be the spark that ignites a new energy vision for Puerto
Rico.
On Tuesday, December 12, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and
Governor Ricardo Rosselló announced a plan to rebuild and transform Puerto
Rico's electric power system with modern grid technologies and control systems.
The new system will have increased renewable generation, such as wind and
solar; incorporate new distributed energy resource (DER) technologies, such
as energy
storage and microgrids; reduce dependency on fossil fuels; and enable
energy to become abundant, affordable and sustainable for the people of Puerto
Rico, according to the Governors.
The plan was created by the Puerto Rico Energy Resiliency
Working Group established by Governor Cuomo to aid the island in its damage
assessment and power grid rebuild planning. Member of the working group include
the organizations heavily involved in the energy transformation such as the New
York Power Authority, DOE, ConEd, EPRI, SEPA, NREL and others.
The group released a 63-page report, “Build
Back Better: Reimagining and Strengthening the Power Grid of Puerto Rico,”
which offers its vision for the future of the transmission and distribution
system, system operations and generation and includes damage assessments and
cost estimates. An implementation roadmap is also included in the report.
The total estimated costs, including a 30 percent scope
confidence escalator, come in at a whopping $17.6 billion. Of that $17.6
billion, $1.4 billion would support the development of DERs including
microgrids and solar PV. Another $97 million would go to rebuild hydro and
renewable power plants.
The envisioned system will be more resilient, efficient,
advanced, and less dependent on fossil fuel imports that cost Puerto Ricans
more than $2 billion annually, said the Governors in a press release.
The working group's rebuild recommendations are based on
experience implementing power system recovery, rebuilding and hardening in
the aftermath of hurricanes encountered on the U.S. mainland over the last
decade. The recommendations include the use of modern technology and
incorporate lessons learned from the successful rebuild efforts in other
regions after natural disasters, such as Superstorm Sandy in New York.
Additionally, the plan's recommendations align with the U.S. Department of
Energy's recommendations for power system hardening and resiliency.
"After Superstorm Sandy, Governor Cuomo saw firsthand
the real hardships of New Yorkers without electricity and heating for days and
even weeks on end," Richard Kauffman, Chairman of Energy and Finance, New
York State. "The Governor immediately put into action a strategy to
rebuild the grid of the past with the grid of the future under Reforming the
Energy Vision, or REV, for a cleaner, more resilient and affordable energy
system. I'm proud to be part of the plan to ensure Puerto Ricans will benefit
from New York's experience and knowledge as we help the U.S. territory rebuild
their grid."
"In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in New York, a
plan was immediately put into place to harden and enhance the power grid to
ensure storms would not damage our communities in the future — and now is the
time to implement a similar plan to ensure these upgrades are also completed in
Puerto Rico," Governor Cuomo said. "We need to act now to transform
the island's power grid and provide the people of Puerto Rico with a modern and
reliable electric system."
The development of the plan was undertaken in parallel with
New York State's post-hurricane assessment and restoration support to Puerto
Rico that began in September. Currently, more than 450 New York State utilities
workers are on the ground in Puerto Rico, working diligently to repair the
island's power grid.
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