Archive: Business & Technology

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced Tuesday that New Yorkers are buying electric vehicles at a record pace, with sales increasing by 63 percent in 2018. The number of electric vehicles on the road jumped to 36,854 in 2018, up from 24,551 in 2017. A new report also released today provides a new cost-benefit analysis showing increased deployment of electric vehicles in New York State could provide up to $5.1 billion in societal benefits, including monetary savings for both electric vehicle drivers and utility customers. Increasing the use of electric vehicles supports Cuomo's Green New Deal, a nation-leading clean energy and jobs agenda that puts New York on a path to carbon neutrality and achieving the state's goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030.

"As we continue to expand our charging infrastructure across the state, we are making it easier and more affordable than ever to drive an electric vehicle in New York," Cuomo said. "The spike in sales of electric vehicles in 2018 underscores not only the benefits of these vehicles but also the positive impact our Charge NY initiatives are having on our ability to move to greener power."

The Governor also announced a new fast charger hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport that will enable taxis, ride sharing vehicles, buses and other electric vehicles to charge in 20 minutes or less at the major international transportation destination.

The electric vehicles analysis, funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, assessed the benefits and costs of meeting New York's goal to increase the number of electric vehicles on the road to approximately 850,000 by 2025 and two million by 2030. Societal benefits consider the direct, monetary benefits that will flow to New York State as a result of the transition from gasoline powered vehicles to electric vehicles, as well as the indirect benefits of reduced carbon emissions. The analysis reviewed electric vehicle adoption from the point of view of electric vehicle owners, other utility customers and society as a whole, and whether the benefits and costs were different in three regions of the state - New York City/Westchester, Long Island and Upstate New York - by taking into account various electricity rates and charging infrastructure availability.

The findings include:

• Electric vehicle incentives such as the state's successful Drive Clean Rebate and federal tax credit are vital to sustaining an increase in purchases, accounting for between 20 and 35 percent of the total benefit to electric vehicle drivers.
• Societal benefits vary by region but are maximized when utilities encourage charging during off-peak hours, rising from $2.8 billion statewide to $5.1 billion when off-peak charging is encouraged.
• Societal benefits increase by about $600 million statewide by expanding the number of fast charging stations because the cost savings from more electric vehicle use more than offsets the additional cost of these stations.
• Charging infrastructure costs account for a significant portion of the societal cost of electric vehicle adoption, about $6 billion through 2030. Reducing these costs through innovation or other means would increase the benefits of electric vehicle adoption.
• In every region, the increase in utility bill revenues from additional electric vehicles is larger than the cost of supplying electricity to the cars, by as much as $4,500 per vehicle. The report modeled scenarios that found utilities could invest in expanding electric vehicle adoption while still providing cost savings to their customers.

The analysis comes on the heels of New Yorkers buying more electric vehicles in one year than ever before - more than 16,000 electric vehicles were sold in 2018, about 60 percent more than in 2017. The increase is due in part to numerous initiatives launched under Charge NY, Cuomo's initiative to get more electric cars and trucks on the road and include:

• EVolve NY, an initiative to address market gaps in charging infrastructure to accelerate electric vehicle adoption and deployment of fast chargers in high-traffic corridors across the state. The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has committed up to $250 million through 2025 for this initiative. The new JFK chargers are to be designed and installed with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as part of the EVolve NY program. The new airport charging hub will include 13 150kw direct current (DC) fast chargers creating the largest non-Tesla charging hub in the country. Ten of the JFK chargers will be installed in a cellphone parking lot for use by the public, rideshare drivers, taxis, and the Port Authority's own fleets. Three other chargers will be in an adjacent lot and used exclusively by Port Authority electric buses. This advance will add to the medium-speed (Level 2) chargers that are already in the airport's indoor parking garages. The EVolve program also will deploy up to 200 fast chargers, enabling drivers to charge in as little as 20 minutes, to more than 50 locations along the New York State Thruway, other major traffic corridors and in five New York major cities.
• The Drive Clean Rebate, which provides New York residents with a rebate of up to $2,000 for the lease or purchase of a new electric car. NYSERDA has already provided more than 14,000 rebates under this $70 million initiative.
• Charge Ready NY, which provides $4,000 per vehicle charging port for public or private employers, building owners, municipalities and non-profit organizations to install Level 2 charging stations. NYSERDA is providing $5 million for this initiative for a total of 1,250 new charging ports.
• Rebates for municipalities for the purchase of lease of electric vehicles. The Department of Environmental Conservation's (DEC) has $300,000 available for this program.