Sylvia Louie

Director of Business Development, New York Power Authority

2022 C3E Government Award Winner

Sylvia Louie is a Director of Business Development at the New York Power Authority (NYPA), the largest state public power organization in the United States. As part of the NYPA development team, Louie focuses on development of large-scale renewables, energy storage, and transmission projects supporting New York State’s ambitious clean energy goals, as established in the 2019 Climate Leadership & Community Protection Act. Along with a variety of projects, she supports opportunities for public–private collaborations to help achieve these state energy goals. 

Louie joined NYPA in 2009 as a mechanical engineer, providing engineering design skills to the Energy Services & Technology group and supporting implementation of energy-saving initiatives for NYPA customers. In 2012, she joined the Clean Energy Technology group, focusing on development of clean energy technology projects. In 2014, she entered the executive office as a Special Project Manager, helping NYPA leadership set strategic initiatives for a clean energy future. Prior to joining NYPA, she spent four years as a design engineer of HVAC systems for a small consulting engineering firm.

Louie is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of New York and a certified Project Management Professional. She earned her BE in Mechanical Engineering from The Cooper Union and her MBA from the New York University Stern School of Business.

+ Learn More About Sylvia Louie's Clean Energy Journey

Before Sylvia could talk or walk, she visited the New York Power Authority’s (NYPA’s) Moses-Saunders Power Dam in Messena, N.Y., and stayed at the NYPA Trustee House with her parents. They signed the guest book and took this picture. Today, after nearly 13 years with the organization, she is a well-respected senior leader at NYPA.

Louie baby

Family and friend connections often pave the way to lucrative and fast-paced success within the private sector, but Sylvia decided to take a different path. Although her father recently retired after 40 years with NYPA, even one of Sylvia’s colleagues was surprised to learn that Mr. Louie was, in fact, related to her. Sylvia was committed to building her own career within NYPA, and she has been quite successful.

“Happenstance” is the word used to describe her first role at NYPA after a short post-college stint working with a small engineering firm designing HVAC systems. Early clean energy work often involved improving energy efficiency for residential and commercial customers. Sylvia began building teams, expanding customer outreach, and establishing herself as a hard worker. “Keep your eyes open for new opportunities” became her mantra, and she moved into a role within the executive office to continue to grow her portfolio within the organization. Sylvia has found a home at NYPA—a home probably few could have predicted when her mother and father signed in at the Trustee House the day after her first birthday.