Sunrise Wind passes two new milestones

David Hardy, group EVP and CEO Americas at Ørsted. ““With the federal Record of Decision in-hand and our final investment decision having been made, we can continue to create hundreds of local union jobs and stand up a vibrant supply chain.”

Yesterday the Sunrise Wind project received its Record of Decision (ROD) from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), crossing a critical milestone in the federal environmental review process. The ROD formally concludes the agency’s National Environmental Policy Act review process and precedes the anticipated approval of Sunrise Wind’s Construction and Operations Plan (COP), expected this summer. Marking a business milestone, developers Ørsted and Eversource reported that they had jointly taken a final investment decision on the the project, and will now advance with some important onshore construction activities.

Located approximately 30 miles east of Montauk, N.Y., Sunrise Wind is expected to be the country’s largest offshore wind farm on completion, generating enough clean energy to power nearly 600,000 homes.

“These milestones achieved by Ørsted and Eversource on the heels of South Fork Wind entering full operation demonstrate New York’s leadership in building the U.S. offshore wind industry with Sunrise Wind and future projects on their way to generating clean wind energy to power the grid,” said Doreen M. Harris, president and CEO at New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). “As the onshore supply chain work moves forward, we will continue to see the economic investments in communities from the Capital Region to Long Island come to fruition in the form of good paying jobs and community benefits that are a critical part of our clean energy transition.”

New York State recently selected Sunrise Wind to negotiate a 25-year contract to provide energy to the state. The project is finalizing agreements with NYSERDA on this Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificates (OREC) contract.

As previously announced, Ørsted has agreed to acquire Eversource’s 50 percent ownership share in Sunrise Wind, becoming the project’s sole owner, subject to signing of an OREC contract with NYSERDA, finalization of acquisition agreements, COP approval, and other relevant regulatory approvals. Eversource will remain contracted to lead the project’s onshore construction.

“New York is already home to the trailblazing South Fork Wind project, and with Sunrise Wind we will build on that foundation, broadening the economic benefits of offshore wind while delivering far more clean renewable power,” said David Hardy, group EVP and CEO Americas at Ørsted. “With the federal Record of Decision in-hand and our final investment decision having been made, we can continue to create hundreds of local union jobs and stand up a vibrant supply chain.“

“We are poised and ready to start constructing the transmission system to connect Sunrise Wind’s clean power to the New York electric grid,” said Joe Nolan, chairman, president, and CEO of Eversource Energy. “It’s a momentous infrastructure project, to be built by local contractors and the men and women of New York’s building trades and other labor unions. We promised to put New Yorkers to work building the energy of the future, and now we’re ready to deliver on that promise.”

Sunrise Wind is making significant investments in the New York State offshore wind workforce and supply chain, including:

• A record $200 million offshore wind supply chain award to Long Island-based contractor Haugland Energy Group LLC, which will create more than 400 jobs for New York union workers to install the underground duct bank system for Sunrise Wind’s onshore transmission line in Brookhaven, in Suffolk County.
• $86 million supply chain contract with Riggs Distler & Company, Inc., bringing construction and steel manufacturing work to Capital Region and Western New York companies supporting the construction of advanced foundation components for wind turbines at the Port of Coeymans. Supporting the development of New York’s National Offshore Wind Training Center on Long Island with a $10 million investment.
• Advancing the first offshore wind project in America to use high-voltage direct current transmission technology.
• Investing $5 million in a research partnership with Stony Brook University.
• Establishing an operations and maintenance hub in East Setauket and harbor facility in Port Jefferson to support wind farm operations and the long-term associated operations and maintenance jobs.
• Completed a host community agreement with the Town of Brookhaven.