The New York Power Authority's (NYPA) new president and CEO, Roger B. Kelley, says he is committed to working with the state's municipal electric systems to address major energy and environmental challenges.

At the annual meeting of the state's Municipal Electric Utilities Association, Kelley, who took office at NYPA in July 2007, said the state faces a series of critical energy issues, including the need to develop new generation and transmission projects, diversify its power sources, combat volatility in electricity prices and protect the environment.

Kelley reported that NYPA's new 50-year federal license for the Niagara Power Project, the municipal systems' principal power source, took effect on Sept. 1, 2007, and that the NYPA concluded a major upgrade at the hydroelectric facility in December 2006. He told municipal system officials that an agreement reached in 2003 between the NYPA and the municipals had secured their long-term supply of Niagara power and “set us on the path to a bright future of cooperation in such vital areas as energy efficiency, electric-drive transportation and economic development.”