NY Governor Announces $12M Initiative for EV Adoption and Integration Through $6B Clean Energy Fund

Governor Kathy Hochul has announced grants worth $12 million, through New York’s ten-year, $6 billion Clean Energy Fund, to not only support the development and demonstration of innovative, replicable solutions for adopting electric vehicles and integrating them with the electric grid but to also back novel demonstrations of medium and heavy-duty electric and hydrogen fuel cell technologies.

The announcement will help achieve the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act requirements of a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040 and reduce emissions by 85% by 2050, thereby standing with the State’s transition to zero-emission vehicles by 2035 through a $1 billion investment.

“As New York continues to advance toward a zero-emission future, it’s imperative that we continue to improve the affordability of clean transportation ownership as we scale up a resilient and reliable energy grid,” said Governor Hochul. “This $12 million initiative offers an innovative way to do both exploring and supporting options for vehicle charging infrastructure that also provides energy back to the grid. We are committed to making it possible for both residents and companies to transition to owning and charging electric vehicles — building a greener future for all.”

The initiative, led by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), will look to improve EV charging infrastructure and reduce grid integration costs, improving the economics of EV ownership for residential consumers and commercial fleet managers.

The program will also encourage research and innovation supporting deployment of EVs as a beneficial asset to both EV owners and grid operators, including combining EVs with bi-directional charging, energy storage, and on-site energy generation, and demonstrating medium and heavy-duty vehicle electrification, either through fuel-cell electric vehicles or standard battery operated EVs.

“The PSC recognizes the importance of the electrification of the transportation sector in the attainment of New York State’s climate goals,” said New York State Public Service Commission Chair Rory M. Christian said. “This commitment will amplify existing efforts and stimulate new investments supporting PSC policies and programs to incentivize the development of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.”

Awards worth $3 million each will be granted for product development and demonstrations of technologies and business models which will help reduce energy demand peaks and provide grid benefits through managed charging/discharging, lowering the total cost of necessary electric grid infrastructure upgrades.

The initiative is expected to improve the usage of existing grid infrastructure while contributing to environmental and energy equity and broader deployment of zero-emission vehicles throughout New York State by demonstrating electric and fuel cell vehicles in hard-to-electrify use cases like heavy on-road vehicles and construction equipment.

"Electrifying medium-heavy duty vehicles can provide enormous environmental and community benefits, but lengthy interconnection delays are already slowing this transition,” said Dakoury Godo-Solo, Project Manager, Electric Vehicle Charging Systems at Environmental Defense Fund. “This funding, together with efforts ongoing at the Public Service Commission, has tremendous potential to support the deployment of innovative charging solutions and business models to minimize grid impacts, speeding interconnections and lowering costs to the benefit of electric vehicle owners and ratepayers alike.”

The State will receive $133 million through 2026 by NYSERDA’s Grid Modernization Program to research, develop, and provide funding for innovative solutions that support the advancement of a smart, modernized electric grid, remove barriers, and enable the utility investments necessary for full deployment at scale of advanced technologies for the power grid.