Beneath the streets of Queens, at the Astoria Energy Complex, a quiet revolution in clean power has just gone live—powering 1 million New York City homes with 1.25 gigawatts of Canadian hydropower, delivered through the longest underground transmission line in North America. The Champlain Hudson Power Express (CHPE), a $3.4 billion project spearheaded by Transmission Developers, Inc. in partnership with Hydro-Québec and enabled by Hitachi Energy’s HVDC Light® technology, is now fully operational, marking a pivotal moment in urban decarbonization. On June 16, Governor Kathy Hochul flipped the switch, declaring that New York City is no longer just imagining a clean energy future—it’s living it.
This isn’t just about replacing fossil fuels; it’s about reimagining how cities access reliable, renewable power. By funneling firm hydropower from Quebec directly into one of the most energy-hungry regions in the U.S., CHPE immediately accounts for up to 20% of NYC’s electricity demand. That’s equivalent to removing 3.9 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually—roughly the same as taking 44% of the city’s cars off the road. In a state where coal is already extinct and natural gas plants are increasingly strained, this project delivers not just electrons, but resilience.
The implications extend far beyond emissions. CHPE is a direct rebuke to federal rollbacks on clean energy, particularly those championed by former President Donald Trump, who attempted to derail offshore wind projects and even used taxpayer funds to incentivize TotalEnergies to abandon a New York lease. Yet, as Hochul noted, “Despite unprecedented federal headwinds, New York will remain a national climate and clean energy leader.” The state, alongside six others, has already filed suit over those lost clean energy opportunities—while CHPE proves that progress can’t be stopped by political interference.
What makes CHPE even more remarkable is its invisibility. Buried deep underground, the 339-mile transmission line avoids the visual and environmental disruptions typical of large-scale infrastructure. Its converter stations, made possible by Hitachi Energy’s compact HVDC Light® system, fit seamlessly into the urban fabric of New York City—proving that cutting-edge grid technology can coexist with dense populations. And the economic ripple effect is real: over the next 25 years, the project will inject more than $3.4 billion into the regional economy. Already, $2 million from its $40 million Green Economy Fund has been awarded to organizations supporting workforce development and clean energy job training in disadvantaged communities.
As cities worldwide grapple with climate deadlines and energy security, CHPE offers a blueprint: resilient, equitable, and deeply scalable. The lights in a million homes are now on—powered not by gas, not by politics, but by water and will.