Smart Path Connect is a transformative transmission project strengthening New York’s electric grid. Through the upgrade of approximately 100 miles of transmission infrastructure—including both new and enhanced substations—Smart Path Connect creates a continuous 345 kV corridor across northern and central New York. The modernized system improves reliability, reduces grid congestion, and expands access to clean energy resources. A collaboration between the New York Power Authority and National Grid, Smart Path Connect helps deliver affordable, reliable, and sustainable electricity to communities and businesses across New York State.
Project Benefits:
- Unlocks approximately 1,000 megawatts (MW) of additional generation capacity Improves asset condition
- Increases transmission system resilience to severe weather events
- Projected to avoid nearly one million tons of CO₂ annually and cut NOx emissions by approximately 167 tons per year.
- Manages long-term energy costs by reducing transmission congestion, resulting in approximately $438 million in annual savings
- Leverages advanced transmission technologies to give grid operators greater visibility into system performance.
- Provides the infrastructure needed to meet increasing energy demand across the state.
- Supports New York’s economic future making the state more attractive to renewable energy developers and business investment.
Governor Hochul Celebrates Completion of 100-Mile Smart Path Connect Transmission Project, Delivering More Than $438 Million in Annual Savings for New Yorkers.
Governor Hochul Celebrates Completion of 100-Mile Smart Path Connect Transmission Project, Delivering More Than $438 Million in Annual Savings for New Yorkers.
The Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act signed into law by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on April 3, 2020, provides for the “timely and cost-effective construction of new, expanded and upgraded distribution... to achieve clean energy and environmental targets established in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.” The Act directs the Public Service Commission (PSC) to identify projects for which "there is a need to proceed expeditiously to promote the State's public policy goals."
On July 2, 2020, NYPA submitted a petition to the PSC for the development of the Smart Path Connect (formerly the Northern New York Priority Transmission Project) which was approved by an order dated October 15, 2020. The Project is a multi-faceted project that includes completion of the second phase of NYPA’s 86-mile Smart Path Moses-Adirondack rebuild, rebuilding approximately 45 miles of transmission eastward from Massena to the Town of Clinton, known as the Northern Alignment, and rebuilding approximately 55 miles of transmission southward from Croghan to Marcy, known as the Southern Alignment, as well as rebuilding and expanding several substations along the impacted transmission corridor. The work falls almost exclusively within existing transmission rights-of-way.
Q: What is Smart Path Connect
A: Smart Path Connect is a major transmission infrastructure project led by the New York Power Authority (NYPA) and National Grid to modernize and expand New York State's electric grid.The project rebuilt approximately 100 miles of transmission lines within New York State were rebuilt and upgraded or rebuilt several substations in order to enable the flow of an additional 1,000 megawatts of clean, renewable energy. That is enough to power approximately 750,000 homes throughout New York State.
Q: Why was Smart Path Connect needed?
A: Smart Path Connect is critical to realizing the full potential of renewable energy in the Northern New York area. The transmission project complements and expands upon Smart Path and the Central East Energy Connect transmission upgrade in the Mohawk Valley and Capital Region. Smart Path Connect will increase capacity and help move power when and where it is needed.
Q: How does Smart Path Connect improve grid reliability
A: The project creates additional pathways for electricity to flow across the state, reducing the risk of outages caused by increased demand, severe weather events, or transmission bottlenecks
Q: What is the project breakdown of the NYPA and National Gridcollaboration
A: NYPA built and energized three new substations, as well as 45 miles of transmission lines between Clinton and Massena in the North Country. NYPA’s new digital substations include Haverstock in Massena, Willis Annex in Chateaugay, and Adirondack in Croghan. National Grid completed construction of the project’s southern alignment, a 55-mile segment between the towns of Croghan and Marcy, including constructing a new substation, Austin Road in the Lewis County town of Glenfield.
Q: Are these two transmission lines connected?
A: Yes. The two Smart Path Connect segments are linked by NYPA’s 78-mile Smart Path transmission project—the mid-2023 reconstruction of the Moses to Adirondack transmission lines.The transmission project also complements and expands upon the Central East Energy Connect transmission upgrade in the Mohawk Valley and Capital Region. All together, they form nearly 200 uninterrupted miles of upgraded 345kv transmission between Clinton and Oneida counties.
Q: What is the New York Independent System Operator’s (NYISO) role in Smart Path Connect?
A: NYISO serves as grid operator and transmission planning authority for the statewide network of which Smart Path Connect is now a vital part. NYISO works to identify existing and potential congestion within the grid to balance supply and demand and maintain reliability.
Q: How was grid capacity improved
A: By rebuilding and modernizing transmission lines, the project unlocks approximately 1,000 MW (megawatts), enough to power 750,000 homes. Smart Path Connect enables the release of trapped renewable generation in Upstate New York—such as hydropower, wind, and solar—and provides a clear pathway for it to flow where and when it is needed. One example of available energy is the clean, low-cost hydropower from NYPA’s St. Lawrence-FDR Power Project in Massena.
Q: How does the project help during severe weather?
A: Smart Path Connect improves grid reliability by creating new transmission pathways that can help maintain system reliability during high winds, ice storms, and other extreme weather events.
Q: What does upgrading from 230 kV to 345 kVaccomplish?
A: The higher-voltage transmission system allows significantly more electricity to be moved across the grid, helping accommodate growing energy demand and increasing renewable energy generation.
Q: How are the digital substations more effective?
A: The project incorporates advanced digital substation technologies that provide greater operational visibility, real-time monitoring, and more efficient asset management.Included is IEC 61850, the global standard for digital substation communication and utility automation. IEC 61850 enables faster communication between equipment, enhanced monitoring capabilities, and improved system performance.
Q: Can Smart Path Connect technologies be expanded elsewhere?
A: Yes. The project was designed with scalability in mind and serves as a model for future transmission modernization efforts in New York, the U.S., and the world.
Q: Does Smart Path Connect create new renewable energy generation?
A: No. The project does not generate electricity itself. It provides the transmission infrastructure needed to move renewable energy toNew York State homes and businesses more efficiently.
Q: Are environmental benefits expected?
A: Yes. NYPA estimates the project will avoid nearly 1 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions annually and reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by approximately 167 tons per year. The upgrades advance New York's Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act by helping reach a zero-carbon emission energy system by 2040.
Q: What economic benefits does Smart Path Connect provide?
A: Smart Path Connect is part of New York State’s largest buildout of transmission lines innearly half a century. Projects like this support economic development across New York State. by improving access to reliable electricity, enabling renewable energy projects, reducing congestion costs, and providing jobs associated with construction and operations.
Q: Will the operation of Smart Path Connect also save money?
A: While electric rates are influenced by many factors, reducing congestion is expected to help manage long-term energy costs.NYPA estimates the operation of Smart Path Connect will save approximately $438 million annually by reducing transmission congestion. As the largest state public power organization in the nation, NYPA expects congestion savings to be reflected in costs for its customers, including municipalities, businesses, and other public power customers across New York State.
Q: How does Smart Path Connect fit into New York's energy future?
A: The project creates the infrastructure needed to accommodate growing electricity demand, supportadditional renewable energy generation, and strengthen grid reliability for decades to come. Also, by demonstrating successful grid modernization and clean energy integration, Smart Path Connect helps position New York to compete for future federal funding and investment opportunities.
Q: Why should New Yorkers care about the Smart Path Connect transmission project?
A: Smart Path Connecttransmission project reduces grid congestion, helping ensure that New Yorkers have access to reliable power. It also lays the foundation for future economic growth, inviting private investment throughout the state and enabling the development of similar energy projects
Q: Why is transmission a major issue nationwide?
A: The demand for electricity is growing across the U.S.and grid operators are finding it increasingly more difficult to move electricity efficiently from where it's produced to where it's needed. Expanding and modernizing the nation’s electric grid is necessary in order to meet demand and ensure system reliably. Smart Path Connect is one of New York’s solutions to this problem and serves as a model for future projects in New York State and across the nation.
Updated Q & A from APPA Newsletter Interview w Rosaria Obazee, Dec. 2025
Q: When did NYPA and National Grid first begin making plans to develop Smart Path Connect?
- Under the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act (“Act”), the New York State Legislature determined that Priority Transmission Projects (PTPs) must be advanced expeditiously to meet the renewable energy and greenhouse gas reduction mandates of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (“CLCPA”). The Act identified the New York Power Authority (NYPA)—given its financial stability, access to capital, and extensive technical and operational experience—as the entity best positioned to develop these PTPs, either independently or with partners.
- In October 2020, the New York State Public Service Commission designated the Northern New York Project (now the Smart Path Connect Project) as a PTP and referred it to NYPA for development. Following a public solicitation, NYPA selected National Grid as its co-participant in March 2021.
Q: What are Smart Path Connect’s goals in terms of reliability and service improvements, and how will the development of these new transmission lines meet these goals?
- The project is essential to unlocking the full renewable energy potential of Northern New York. NYISO data shows wind curtailments have grown steadily since 2010, with 70 GWh curtailed in 2019 alone due to transmission constraints. Additionally, significant new renewable resources in the NYISO interconnection queue could not be delivered downstate without major upgrades to the Northern New York transmission system.
Q: How does Smart Path Connect built atop the infrastructure development put in place with the 2023 completion of Smart Path?
- The Project ties into the backbone of the New York Control Area (NYCA) transmission network and delivers substantial reliability benefits by replacing aging infrastructure along the Moses–Adirondack–Porter and Moses–Willis–Patnode/Ryan corridors. It complements other statewide transmission upgrades and establishes a continuous 345-kV path capable of delivering up to an additional 1,000 MW of renewable power from Northern New York to major load centers. Additional benefits include reduced curtailment, congestion relief, statewide energy cost savings, improved capacity market performance, and lower emissions.
Q: What were the greatest challenges – from both a regulatory and physical infrastructure standpoint – that NYPA has needed to overcome to advance the Smart Path Connect project?
- Change in wet land regulations by the Army Corp of Engineers that necessitated the change in configuration from a breaker and half to double breaker, double bus configuration.
NYISO/FERC/DEC/DPS Orders including:
- ISO Outage recalls
- FERC Reroute away from Dam
- Slurry construction protocols
Design Changes:
- New substation design Standards (incl 61850)
- Change Ice criteria
- Build new Marcy Bay
- Move Willis (RE) and Build New Adirondak Substations
Supply Chain and Vendor Issues which increased procurement lead time. These were primarily caused by:
- Covid 19 Pandemic Impact
- Middle East War.
Q: How does Smart Path Connect fit within the VISION2030 Strategic Plan?
- Decarbonization is a key part of NYPA’s VISION2030 Strategic plan, and the Smart Path Connect project directly supports statewide decarbonization efforts by enabling increased interconnection of new solar, onshore wind, and energy storage resources.
Q: What benefits do you see Smart Path Connect providing New Yorkers, whether in the immediate or longer term?
- The project delivers substantial reliability benefits by replacing aging infrastructure.
- It complements other statewide transmission upgrades and establishes a continuous 345-kV path capable of delivering up to an additional 1,000 MW of renewable power from Northern New York to major load centers.
- Additional benefits include reduced curtailment, congestion relief, statewide energy cost savings, improved capacity market performance, and lower emissions.
December 9, 2022: Governor Hochul Announces Start of Construction on Smart Path Connect Transmission Line
August 11, 2022: Governor Hochul Announces Approval of Major Upstate Transmission Line
March 30, 2021:New York Power Authority Board of Trustees Approves Northern New York Priority Transmission Project Plan
December 9, 2020: NYPA Approves New Strategic Plan to Provide Clean Energy Roadmap for Next Decade
October 30, 2020: NYPA Invites Interested Parties to Propose Co-Participant Roles for the Development of the Northern New York Priority Transmission Project
October 15, 2020: First Transmission Project Moves Forward Under Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act
Jeff Farrell
Real Estate Administrator
Phone: 315-764-6837
Karen White
Manager, Community Relations
New York Power Authority
Phone: 315-764-6863
Or call: 866-697-8758
For Landowner consultations along the Southern Alignment, please contact:
Amy Rood
Stakeholder Relations
nationalgrid
Phone: 315-401-0065