While Tulsa’s Williams Cos. does battle with New York State over New York’s denial of another gas line, a report by Consumer Energy Alliance is out with a report entitled “Pipelines and their Benefits to New York.”
The report, released this week during a discussion on the Future of Natural Gas and Economic Development in New York, examined the benefits of pipelines to the state. It focused on the need for affordable energy supplies to keep the daily lives of families and businesses across New York moving.
Highlights from the report include:
- Consumers and households in New York already pay 44 percent more for electricity than the national average – even though neighboring Pennsylvania has ample supplies of energy and pipeline infrastructure available to benefit New Yorkers.
- In January 2018, spot market prices in the New York City region jumped to a record high of $140.25 for natural gas, as compared to the average natural gas spot market price for New York in 2017 was $3.08. New Yorkers were subjected to prices that were $137 higher due to self-inflicted capacity constraints created by their own elected officials.
- In New York, natural gas alone provides nearly 46 percent of the state’s electricity needs. As the state continues to rely more and more on natural gas and building or expanding gas-fired power plants, that number is expected to rise to 56 percent of New York’s electric needs.
- 74 percent of energy generation for downstate residents is provided by fossil fuels – and natural gas is used by more than half of all New Yorkers to heat their homes.
- Natural gas is the foundational building block for the state’s manufacturing sector. New York had over 194,400 jobs that were tied to energy-intensive companies and made up nearly 55 percent of the state’s manufacturing sector.
- There is a significant economic impact to New York from the numerous denied, delayed and proposed pipeline projects in the state.
