After months of town hall meetings, petitions and political pressure, Staten Island residents and local officials are claiming victory. Hecate Grid has withdrawn its plan for a proposed 650-megawatt battery energy storage facility on Victory Boulevard in the Travis neighborhood, filing formal paperwork to kill the project. The site had become a borough-wide flashpoint over safety worries and a rollout that critics say lacked transparency.
Developer Formally Notifies Regulators
Hecate's attorneys filed a notice with the New York State Public Service Commission on Aug. 18, 2025, stating that "plans to construct the BESS have been terminated" and that "no part of the BESS has been constructed." The filing appears in the commission's docket and effectively ends the Swiftsure project unless the developer starts over and re-files, according to the New York State Public Service Commission.
What Swiftsure Was Proposing
The Swiftsure plan called for up to 650 megawatts of battery capacity spread across roughly eight to nine acres, tied by a buried gen-tie line to Con Edison’s Fresh Kills substation to help cover peak demand. Hecate described the site as a grid-connected battery energy storage system that would stockpile lower-cost energy and discharge it during high-demand periods. Neighbors countered that the project’s size and its proximity to homes were simply too much for the area. The company’s safety and operations claims are laid out on its project page; see Hecate for details.
Regulatory Missteps And A Denied Extension
After winning a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) in 2024, Hecate asked the commission for a six-month extension to file a required decommissioning plan and cost estimate. That request landed with a thud. In an April 21, 2025 ruling, PSC Secretary Michelle Phillips rejected the extension as untimely, noting that it was submitted more than 200 days after the deadline. Local lawmakers, including Assemblyman Sam Pirozzolo and State Sen. Andrew Lanza, had urged regulators to toss the out-of-time filing, and officials later pointed to both the denial and the developer's termination letter as key turning points in the fight to stop the project, according to the New York State Assembly and the Public Service Commission.
Neighbors Pushed Back
Residents in Travis and surrounding areas organized meetings and petitions, arguing they had not been properly notified about the plan and citing safety fears after other high-profile battery-site incidents elsewhere in the state. Neighbors and elected officials told CBS New York they were worried about evacuation logistics and toxic smoke if something went wrong. Borough President Vito Fossella labeled the cancellation "a victory for common sense" in local coverage. Community groups and politicians say they are not done and will keep pressing for clearer notice requirements, tighter siting rules and stronger emergency planning.
Aftermath And The Bigger Debate
Ending Swiftsure removes one of Staten Island's most controversial battery proposals, but it also sharpens a bigger debate over where New York should place utility-scale storage projects. Elected leaders on the island are now pushing for new notification and inspection rules and for tougher siting standards at both the city and state level, according to reporting on lawmakers' efforts. Policymakers will be watching to see whether future projects shift toward different technologies, smaller footprints or stricter safety measures as the storage buildout continues.
