Ørsted and Eversource partner with fishermen’s consortium

Image: Ørsted

Joint-venture partners Ørsted and Eversource are to collaborate with Sea Services North America to support safe navigation in and around Northeast offshore wind farms, including the 704-megawatt Revolution Wind project serving Rhode Island and Connecticut, the 132-megawatt South Fork Wind serving Long Island and the 924-megawatt Sunrise Wind project serving New York.

Established by a consortium of Northeast region fishermen, Sea Services North America provides a broad range of services for offshore asset management. Over the last year, Sea Services’ fishermen provided scouting vessels and monitoring services to assist Revolution Wind’s project research vessels in successfully locating, identifying and avoiding fishermen’s gear during pre-construction marine surveys. This partnership helped improve communication and coexistence during the surveys.

Ørsted and Eversource say the collaboration will create jobs for fishermen, increase safety standards, and provide training for participating crews. The agreement will provide additional days at sea for the region’s fishing fleet.

FIRST AGREEMENT OF ITS KIND

The agreement marks the first time an offshore wind developer and a commercial fishing consortium sign a substantial commercial contract in the history of U.S. offshore wind.

Separately, Ørsted has also begun discussions with Sea Services to expand this scope into its Ocean Wind and Skipjack Wind Farms, serving New Jersey and Maryland respectively.

“We believe strongly that offshore wind can coexist with all ocean users, including the region’s commercial and recreational fishing fleets,” said David Hardy, CEO of Ørsted Offshore North America. “Our expanded collaboration with Sea Services will help us as we strive to achieve that coexistence, with the valuable support from fishermen who know the area’s waters best.”

“Our partnership with Sea Services North America follows through on our commitment to engage other ocean users, such as commercial fishermen, throughout the full life cycle of our projects and utilize local partners to bring commercially successful and mutually beneficial projects to life,” said Kenneth Bowes, Eversource Vice President of Siting and Permitting. “We are excited to work with Sea Services on our Northeast projects.”

“Our partnership with Ørsted and Eversource not only ensures enhanced safety and protection of the ocean environment, but also will support the region’s economy by creating new jobs and providing an economic opportunity for our fishermen,” said Sea Services CEO and co-founder, Gordon Videll. ”When our vessels and crews are not fishing, we will be providing Ørsted and Eversource with 24/7 monitoring of all designated wind project assets, as well as monitoring and education for vessels traveling in designated areas. As wind farms mature and grow, so will opportunities for the Sea Services consortium.”