FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 10, 2025

Contact: Scott Seedorf, sseedorf@odonoghuelaw.com 

 

WITH NESE APPROVAL, NEW YORK TAKES A BIG STEP TOWARD MORE AFFORDABLE ENERGY BILLS

 

November 10, 2025—Pipe Trades USA President Gary Arnold issued the following statement on the decision of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to approve the remaining water and other permits for construction of the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Pipeline Project: 

“Governor Hochul’s Department of Environmental Conservation has delivered a major win for the Empire State. For too long, New Yorkers have paid the price for inadequate energy planning. Building NESE is an important first step in bending the cost curve back down for working families and strengthening the grid that powers the state. 

It is beyond serious debate that New York has fallen significantly behind the curve on electricity generation—a key reason why New York families pay some of the highest electricity bills in the country. To address the worsening shortfall in electricity generation and rapidly growing demand, New York needs more generation—and fast.  

Natural gas remains one of the most affordable and reliable sources of energy available, powering six out of ten New York homes. Because the state doesn’t produce enough gas to meet its own needs, it relies on interstate pipelines to deliver it.  By approving the NESE Pipeline, the Hochul Administration has taken a critical step toward increasing supply and lowering costs for New York families. 

The out-of-touch groups that continue to spread misinformation about projects like NESE seem to forget that the transition to natural gas-powered electricity generation has driven nearly two-thirds of U.S. CO2 emissions reductions over the past two decades and ignore the fact that natural gas is becoming cleaner and cleaner thanks to technological advances.  

As Governor Hochul has said, elected leaders need to “govern in reality.”  And the reality is that an all-of-the-above strategy that includes natural gas delivered through pipelines, alongside renewables, nuclear, geothermal and other sources, is the only viable strategy for bringing costs down for New Yorkers, strengthening grid reliability, and keeping pace with demand growth.” 

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Pipe Trades USA is a 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing common-sense policy solutions to America’s energy, infrastructure, and workforce needs. Learn more at pipetradesusa.com.