Five New York Power Authority (NYPA) employees have been selected to receive prestigious 2024 EPRI Technology Transfer Awards for implementing collaborative research to the electricity sector and its customers. The annual EPRI Technology Transfer Awards recognize the leaders who help ensure the public has clean, safe, reliable, affordable and equitable access to electricity across the globe.

"The Power Authority's workforce is continually seeking cutting-edge solutions to improve our operations, strengthen the electric grid, and be a more responsible environmental citizen," said Justin E. Driscoll, Power Authority president and CEO. "This recognition by EPRI attests to our employees' commitment to supporting a reliable energy supply while helping New York State transition to a carbon-free future."

Employees were recognized as follows:

• Lewis Payne for Creation of Minimum Clearance Distances for Vegetation Management, a project to determine the minimum clearances needed between the helicopter and tree cutter/grapple saw and the transmission line by calculating distances under different parameters and approach scenarios.  Participation provided NYPA with better safety guidelines for helicopter pilots, reduced risk of flashover during vegetation management activities and new training material.

• Andrew Weinstock and Lewis Payne for Energy Sector Bat Conservation Solutions. The research tests and deploys artificial prey patches (UV light lures), a scalable, cost-effective method to improve foraging efficiency for bats affected by the wildlife disease White-Nose Syndrome (WNS).  Scalable solutions are urgently needed to improve survival of bats in the established area of WNS (including New York State).
• Alan Ettlinger and John Markowitz for Application of EVs2Scale eRoadMAP for EV Planning, which aims to create a roadmap that enables the utility industry and its regulators to be in lockstep with vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators, and consumers to achieve the goal of a 50 percent EV market share by 2030.
• Bruce Fardanesh for Resource Adequacy for a Decarbonized Future. The objective of this project was to review and refine electric reserve margins and loss of load prevention requirements while proceeding with the electric utility industry's decarbonization strategies, climate vulnerabilities, and increased adoption of distributed and utility-scale renewable energy resources. 

"EPRI applauds the hard work, commitment, and leadership demonstrated by these individuals," said Daniel Brooks, senior vice president of Energy Delivery and Customer Solutions at EPRI. "Congratulations to NYPA for winning four of EPRI's Technology Transfer awards, recognizing leaders and innovators who have applied research to produce significant results."

Learn more about the projects and other 2024 EPRI Technology Transfer Awards winners here.

About NYPA  

NYPA is the largest state public power organization in the nation, operating 17 generating facilities and more than 1,550 circuit-miles of transmission lines. More than 80 percent of the electricity NYPA produces is clean renewable hydropower. NYPA finances its operations through the sale of bonds and revenues earned in large part through sales of electricity. For more information visit www.nypa.gov and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr and LinkedIn.