NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — To help offset the need for new natural gas pipelines to meet growing energy needs in its service area, Con Edison today issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to secure alternative solutions consistent with New York City’s and New York State’s environmental goals.

Con Edison said it was considering investing at least $100 million annually in a bid to avoid construction of a major new gas pipeline. The investments would focus on demand reduction measures and local gas supply enhancements. Demand reduction measures may include energy efficiency, demand response and environmentally-beneficial electrification of space and water heating. Local gas supply enhancement may include biogas technology and natural gas storage.

Peak demand for natural gas in Con Edison’s service areas has grown 30 percent since 2011, and the company expects that demand to grow another 20 percent over the next 20 years. The company serves approximately 1.1 million natural gas customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, Westchester and parts of Queens.

“We have seen significant growth in customers choosing natural gas to heat their homes, and thousands of oil to gas conversions in recent years have helped to clean the air for all New Yorkers,” said Matthew Ketschke, senior vice president of Customer Energy Solutions for Con Edison. “We also acknowledge everyone’s desire to limit the use of fossil fuels as much as possible and continue our region’s environmental progress.”

The RFP can be viewed on the company’s website here: http://bit.ly/2zkP6xW.

Proposals are due by March 1, 2018. Con Edison said it would evaluate proposals based on a variety factors, including a project’s cost, ability to forestall the need for new pipelines and its potential greenhouse gas impacts.

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