As part of efforts to mitigate climate change by leveraging clean energy resources, New York state will be developing more than 20 renewable energy infrastructure projects in 2021.

The announcement was made by state governor Andrew Cuomo, on Earth Day last week.

The projects include the 20MW utility-scale solar energy project which is now nearing completion in Upstate New York.

The more than 20 projects are expected to create over 2,000 jobs and spur nearly $1.5 billion in private investment to help stimulate the state’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The projects are expected to generate enough renewable energy to power more than 320,000 New York homes and reduce carbon emissions by nearly one million metric tons annually, equivalent to taking over 215,000 cars off the road every year.

In addition, the governor launched the state’s fifth annual solicitation, the largest land-based renewable energy procurement in New York to date. The aim of the solicitation is to accelerate the rapid pace of clean energy development and to help New York move towards its goal of producing 70% of electricity from renewables by 2030.

The state government is calling for approximately 4.5 million megawatt-hours of renewable electricity per year, enough to power nearly 600,000 homes as part of the solicitation.

Over the past five years, New York has contracted with over 90 new large-scale land-based renewable energy facilities including solar farms, onshore wind farms, and hydroelectric facilities.

Cuomo said: “New York State’s economy faces huge challenges from both the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing climate crisis, and renewable energy has a vital role to play in our state’s ongoing convalescence and our economic recovery.

“These large-scale renewable projects will foster much-needed investment and thousands of good-paying jobs across New York as we continue to rebuild the state’s economy with green energy. We’re strengthening our commitment to renewable energy by creating new private-public partnerships that can accelerate the development of these critical resources to meet the unprecedented challenges posed by climate change.”

Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, adds: “As someone who grew up near Lake Erie and saw first-hand the harmful effects caused by emissions from the local steel plant, protecting our environment has always been a personal fight for me.

“By making historic investments in renewable energy and creating good-paying jobs, New York continues to show the rest of the country how to fight the effects of climate change and chart a cleaner, more sustainable path for the post-pandemic future.”