Combined heat and power's potential to meet New York City's sustainability goals

Bianca Howard, Alexis Saba, Michael Gerrard and Vijay Modi

Energy Policy, 2014, vol. 65, issue C, 444-454

Abstract: Combined Heat and Power (CHP) has been proven as a mature technology that can benefit both building owners and utility operators. As the economic and environmental benefits of CHP in urban centers gain recognition, regulations and policies have evolved to encourage their deployment. However, the question remains whether these policies are sufficient in helping to achieve the larger sustainability goals, such as the New York City-specific goal of incorporating 800MW of distributed generation. In this paper, the current regulatory and policy environment for CHP is discussed. Then, an engineering analysis estimating the potential for CHP in NYC at the individual building and microgrid scale, considered a city block, is performed. This analysis indicates that over 800MW of individual building CHP systems would qualify for the current incentives but many systems would need to undergo more cumbersome air permitting processes reducing the viable capacity to 360MW. In addition microgrid CHP systems with multiple owners could contribute to meeting the goal even after considering air permits; however, these systems may incorporate many residential customers. The regulatory framework for microgrids with multiple owners and especially residential customers is particularly uncertain therefore additional policies would be needed to facilitate their development.

Keywords: Combined heat and power; Urban energy system planning; Regulatory and policy barriers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:enepol:v:65:y:2014:i:c:p:444-454

DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.10.033

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