Nearly three months after the Town of Hurley issued a moratorium on lithium-ion battery storage facilities, Albany-based energy company Key Capture Energy is in the early stages of a proposed storage plant in nearby Saugerties.
Supervisor Fred Costello told The Overlook that the Albany-based energy company is expected to bring an application before the town Planning Board for a proposed battery plant facility sometime in the new year.
Key Capture Energy has three plants operating in New York—one in Pomona, one outside Buffalo and another in Saratoga County—as well as 11 others in Texas. According to its website, the company has plans to build facilities in 19 states.
Paul Williamson, Director of Development for Key Capture Energy, said he anticipates permit review for the Saugerties project to begin in early 2026.
“We understand that residents may have questions about battery energy storage,” Williamson said in a statement to The Overlook. “Our team looks forward to working with the community, first responders, and third-party experts to answer and address those questions in the future.”
The project is expected to be proposed for one of two locations near the Central Hudson substation at 15 Tomsons Road. Both Costello and Hurley Supervisor Michael Boms said the proximity to the Central Hudson substation is critical to any future proposals.
“[These companies] are looking for heavy-duty industrial transmission lines,” Boms said. He speculated that stored energy from the proposed facilities would use the existing transmission grid to send power not to local communities, but to New York City and data centers throughout the state.
Central Hudson has spent the past three years upgrading its 23 miles of electric transmission lines between Kingston and Catskill in Greene County. Costello said he expects new battery storage projects to emerge along that corridor.
“[These projects] are going to play a major role in the energy grid moving forward. The response to that is the open question,” Costello said. “Do the state standards go far enough or do we institute different standards that protect the community?”
More than two dozen communities statewide have slowed or halted development of such facilities, citing safety and environmental risks. Opponents have cited a spate of lithium-ion battery fires nationwide in recent years. Fires have been reported in Missouri, California, Wisconsin, and Arizona, as well as Warwick, N.Y., in 2023, where noxious fumes unsettled residents. The Federal Emergency Management Agency warns such fires can reignite after being extinguished, release flammable gases, and spread rapidly when overheated cells are ejected from battery packs.
Boms, along with Hurley Councilmember Debbie Dougherty, recently visited the Warwick site. He said what he saw did not quell his concerns.
“What we saw was terrible,” Boms said. “These containers were the modern ones, yet leakage of water still caused a fire.”
Boms added that noise produced by the plants is also a concern.
“The decibel meter registered 62 decibels from these 10 containers,” Boms said, noting that a proposed plant in the Town of Ulster being opposed by Hurley could have up to 300 containers. “Imagine what 300 will sound like.”
Decibel levels above 70 are considered dangerous, according to the Hearing Health Foundation.
Boms said that in addition to Costello, he has been in contact with Kingston Mayor Steve Noble and Ulster Supervisor James Quigley about how to address future projects. Boms added that he is concerned small municipalities with limited budgets could struggle to fight proposals they deem unsafe. In response, he said he would consider forming a regional coalition of towns to share legal and advisory services on the issue.
“They are going to build more of these all over the place,” Boms said. “[These companies] have the power of the purse and this is unfair. If we fight it, our total budget is $5 million. Even a coalition still might not have enough to fight it.”
Costello described the idea of a coalition as a “viable option”, but said he wasn’t sure whether that step would be needed.
“I’m not sure that any of us are there yet. This is still new to us,” Costello said. “There is a big educational component to this for all of us. Yes, there have been problems. We need to identify appropriate mitigations.”
Jim Rich is a senior reporter for The Overlook. You can reach him at jim@theoverlooknews.com.