The US state of New York has signed landmark agreements to procure 1700 MW of offshore wind energy from two projects.
The state has selected Orsted’s 880 MW Sunrise Wind offshore wind farm and Equinor’s 816 MW Empire Wind project as winners in its first competitive offshore wind solicitation.
The projects will form an important part of New York’s ambitious climate goals, and will catalyse investments in the USA’s offshore wind energy supply chain.
Equinor plans to install 60-80 offshore wind turbines in its lease area, located off the coast of Long Island. Its $3 billion Empire project is expected to start operating in late 2024, it said.
Orsted and its joint venture partner, Eversource, will install Siemens Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines in the Sunrise lease area, located 50 km east of Montauk Point, Long Island, adjacent to Orsted’s South Fork and Revolution Wind projects.
Subject to contract signing and Orsted and Eversource’s final investment decisions, the Sunrise wind farm is expected to be operational in 2024.
The project developers have committed to make additional investments in manufacturing and port infrastructure, according to New York state’s government, which plans to oversee installation of 9 GW of offshore wind by 2035.
