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For Immediate Release: 10/04/2023 Rory M. Christian, Chair Contact:
James Denn | James.Denn@dps.ny.gov | (518) 474-7080
23098 / 22-T-0346
October 04, 2023
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Public Information Forums and Public Statement Hearings Set Regarding Offshore Wind Transmission Line |
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ALBANY — The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) will hold in-person public information forums and public statement hearings on Wednesday, October 11, 2023, regarding Empire Offshore Wind LLC and EW Offshore Wind Transport Corporation plans to construct, operate, and maintain the New York portion of the transmission facilities required to interconnect the proposed Empire Wind 2 offshore wind farm, to be located within the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management-designated area to a point of interconnection at the Barrett 138-kilovolt (kV) substation located in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County. On June 17, 2022, Empire filed an application for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need pursuant to Article VII of the Public Service Law seeking to construct, operate, and maintain the New York portion of the transmission facilities required to interconnect its proposed wind farm project. On August 1, 2023, the developer amended its request and modified aspects of its proposal.
The project will extend a total of approximately 12.2 miles within the State of New York and includes several components: two three-core 345-kV high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) submarine export cables located within an approximately 7.7-nautical mile (nm) submarine export cable corridor from the boundary of New York State waters three nautical miles offshore to the cable landfall; a cable landfall in the City of Long Beach; two 345-kV onshore export cable circuits, each with three single-core HVAC onshore export cables within an approximately 1.6-mile onshore export cable corridor from the cable landfall to the onshore substation; an onshore substation in the Village of Island Park, within the Town of Hempstead, which will house major control components for the electrical system and perform functions such as voltage regulation, reactive power compensation, and harmonic filtering; two 345-kV interconnection cable circuits, each with three single-core HVAC interconnection cables within an approximately 1.7-mile interconnection cable corridor from the onshore substation to the newly proposed Hampton Road substation; the new Hampton Road substation in Oceanside in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County, which will include substation facilities that will provide the necessary breaker arrays and 345-kV/138-kV transformers; and, four 138-kV loop-in/loop-out lines cable circuits, located within an approximately 0.1-mile cable corridor from the Hampton Road substation to existing Long Island Power Authority transmission lines located under Lawson Boulevard in the Hamlet of Oceanside, Nassau County.
Under New York State Law, the Commission may adopt or reject the proposal, in whole or part, or modify it. In doing so, the Commission will consider input from the participating parties and the general public. Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) Ashley Moreno and Tara Kersey are presiding over the gathering of public comments and all evidence related to the project. Public statement hearings will be held to obtain comments from the public concerning the project.
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that opportunities for public information and comment regarding the developer’s request will be provided as follows:
During the scheduled informational forums, maps of the proposed route will be available to review, and New York State Department of Public Service representatives will provide an overview of the Commission’s certification process. The developer will then present a brief summary of the project. Members of the public will then have an opportunity to ask questions about the process and the application pending before the Commission.
Each informational forum will be followed by a public statement hearing where all those wishing to comment on the developer’s request will have an opportunity to make a statement on the record before the ALJs. It is not necessary to make an appointment in advance, or present written material to speak at a hearing. Persons will be called to speak after completing a request card. Each public statement hearing will be held open a minimum of thirty minutes and will be kept open until everyone wishing to speak has been heard or other reasonable arrangements have been made to include their comments in the record. A verbatim transcript of each public statement hearing will be made for inclusion in the record of this proceeding.
Persons with disabilities requiring special accommodations should call the Department of Public Service’s Human Resource Management Office at (518) 474-2520 as soon as possible. TDD users may request a sign language interpreter by placing a call through the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call the Department at (800) 342-3377 for free language assistance services.
Other Ways to Comment
For those who cannot attend or prefer not to speak at the public statement hearings, there are several other ways to provide your comments to the Commission. Comments should refer to “Case 22-T-0346 – EOW2.”
Internet or Mail: Go to www.dps.ny.gov, click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), enter “22-T-0346” in the “Search by Case Number” field, and then click on the “Post Comments” box at the top of the page.
Alternatively, comments may be mailed to the Hon. Michelle L. Phillips, Secretary, Public Service Commission, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York, 12223-1350. All written comments will become part of the record considered by the Commission and may be accessed on the Department of Public Service website by searching the case number, as described above, and clicking on the “Public Comments” tab.
Toll-Free Opinion Line: Individuals may choose to submit comments by calling the Commission’s Opinion Line at 1- 800-335-2120. This number is set up to receive comments about pending cases from in-State callers 24-hours a day. These comments are not transcribed verbatim, but a summary is provided to the Commission.
Although comments submitted via these alternate means will be accepted throughout the course of this proceeding, they are requested by November 3, 2023.
The Application may be reviewed online at the Department of Public Service website, www.dps.ny.gov. To access documents, click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), and enter “22-T-0346” in the “Search by Case Number” field.
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