The first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the United States has taken another major step with the installation of the first of 62 13MW GE wind turbines.
Project developers Avangrid, a member of the Iberdrola Group, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) announced in mid-October that installation of the first 13MW Haliade-X wind turbine had been completed.
The 13MW Haliade-X turbines are being transported out to sea by Foss Maritime Company barges and being installed by DEME Group’s ‘Sea Installer’, a dedicated installation vessel with an upgraded crane capacity of 1,600 tonnes.
Given the recent issues facing the United States’ burgeoning offshore wind industry – highlighted most recently by New York’s decision to reject better financial terms for several offshore wind farms affected by the global inflation crisis – this marks an important milestone for the future of offshore wind in North America.
“This is a monumental achievement and a proud day for offshore wind in the United States that proves this industry is real and demonstrates Avangrid’s steadfast commitment to helping the Northeast region meet its clean energy and climate goals,” said Pedro Azagra, Avangrid CEO.
“While this is a landmark for this first-in-the-nation project and the industry, we remain focused on the important work ahead to continue the successful installation campaign of these massive turbines and deliver the first power to Massachusetts homes and businesses this year.”
Located 15 miles off the coast of Massachusetts, Vineyard Wind will eventually generate enough electricity for the equivalent of over 400,000 homes and businesses, with first power expected to be generated next month.
And despite significant headwinds affecting the larger North American offshore wind industry, the eventual completion of Vineyard Wind will hopefully serve as a much-needed tipping point in swaying opinions and the politics of offshore wind.
“Having the first offshore wind turbine in the water for the first commercial offshore wind farm in the US is an important symbolic milestone for our company, our customers, and our industry,” said Jan Kjaersgaard, CEO GE Vernova Offshore Wind.
“It shows that our teams are making tangible progress on delivering on the significant potential of offshore wind. We are particularly proud to be using our Haliade-X 13MW turbine to support Vineyard Wind in this endeavor and look forward to continuing to work together with them and all of our partners to bring this historic project to life.”
