Energy Abundance and New York’s Manufacturing Moment
Randy Wolken, President & CEO

This week, I spoke at The Business Council’s 2026 Energy and Environment Conference. At the heart of the conference was a key question that will shape New York’s economic future: Can we provide the energy our industries and communities need to thrive?

This is our manufacturing moment. Major investments in semiconductors, defense, aerospace, biologics, food production, and other advanced industries offer New York the chance to compete among the world’s leading manufacturing regions. But investment depends on more than good intentions or available sites. Manufacturers need energy that’s abundant, reliable, affordable, high quality, and available around the clock. The choices we make about generation, transmission, and permitting will determine whether companies can grow here – and whether communities share in that growth. This is a century-defining opportunity, one that will affect generations after us. We shouldn’t miss it. The only way we become successful is through energy abundance.

For manufacturers, energy is a basic requirement for production and a foundation for long-term decisions. Companies considering a new facility or expansion must know that power and fuel will be there when needed and at a cost they can manage. Uncertainty about supply, reliability, or infrastructure can delay projects, weaken competitiveness, and direct investment elsewhere. New York’s energy system must be planned with the needs of existing employers and future industries in view.

The state is making important grid investments, but their pace and scale must match the growth we’re planning for. We need stronger transmission, more capable local distribution, and better coordination among utilities, the New York Independent System Operator, state agencies, and energy users. Projects can face lengthy planning, permitting, and siting processes, with responsibilities spread across many institutions. We should protect the public and engage communities while setting clear responsibilities, predictable timelines, and coordinated reviews that allow essential infrastructure to be built.

The capacity numbers make the challenge immediate. New York’s reported summer baseline margin fell from 2,227 megawatts in 2019 to 417 megawatts in 2026. That’s a serious warning. Retirements have outpaced replacements, and reliability can’t remain an assumption. We should preserve dependable existing resources where possible, examine planned retirements against current system needs, build new generation, and upgrade transmission. Reliability isn’t separate from economic development. It’s one of the conditions that makes development possible.

New York needs an all-of-the-above approach to generation. Large-scale wind and solar can contribute meaningfully and should remain part of our energy mix. Their output, however, varies with weather and time of day. They require transmission, storage, and other resources that can meet demand when their production is low. Renewables are part of the system, but they aren’t the whole system. For a state planning to serve advanced manufacturing and high-tech industries, we need dependable 24/7 backbone power.

Over the next few years, we must focus on generation and grid improvements that can be delivered as quickly as possible, while retaining dependable capacity. Over the next decade, New York should build a diverse portfolio that includes renewables, natural gas, nuclear power, and other reliable resources. Natural gas users need confidence that supply will be adequate, dependable, and reasonably priced over the life of their investments. Nuclear power offers a major medium and long-term opportunity. We should maximize existing nuclear capacity and work with federal partners early on site selection, technology review, permitting, workforce, and supply chains so new projects can advance responsibly.

Planning must also account for the combined effects of new industrial loads, electrification, and large-load investments. We need realistic forecasts of where and when demand will grow, followed by coordinated investment in generation, transmission, and distribution. Transparent agreements should make clear who pays for customer-specific upgrades and how shared infrastructure benefits the wider system. This can support growth and reduce the risk that ratepayers inherit the cost of assets built for demand that doesn’t materialize. Affordability must be part of every infrastructure decision, especially for energy-intensive manufacturers already facing high costs.

At the conference, I argued that only energy abundance can assure that growth occurs in New York State. We need a coordinated plan centered on reliability, affordability, and economic growth. New York has extraordinary assets: skilled people, research institutions, established manufacturers, and major new investment opportunities. Energy abundance can bring these strengths together. It means building an energy system capable of meeting demand with reliable power, a diverse generation mix, modern infrastructure, and clear, timely decisions.

The stakes extend beyond individual companies or projects. The generation, transmission, and permitting decisions made today will shape New York’s ability to create jobs, strengthen communities, and remain a place where manufacturers can invest and grow. We have a manufacturing moment before us. Our responsibility is to make sure the energy system is ready to meet it.