Vineyard Wind Shareholders Awarded Contracts for 1,350 Megawatts of Offshore Wind Power in Germany and Taiwan
AVANGRID’s majority shareholder Iberdrola and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners add to significant portfolio of offshore projects
Vineyard Wind’s shareholders have been awarded contracts in Germany and Taiwan for offshore wind farms with a combined capacity of more than 1,350 MW. The successful awards to Iberdrola, the majority shareholder of Vineyard Wind partner Avangrid Renewables, as well as Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and partners, during the past week demonstrates Vineyard Wind partners’ capabilities in the global offshore wind market.
Vineyard Wind, which has proposed to develop a wind farm 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard with up to 800 MW of generating capacity, is one of three proponents competing for long-term contracts with Massachusetts’ electric distribution companies (EDCs.) Bids from offshore wind companies to the utilities were submitted in December, and awards are expected by May 23rd. Vineyard Wind has advanced further in the permitting process than any other offshore wind development project in the United States and will deliver the first utility-scale offshore wind farm following the start of in-state construction in 2019 and the start of operations beginning in 2021.
Avangrid Renewables, a subsidiary of AVANGRID Inc. (NYSE:AGR) which is majority owned by Iberdrola S.A., and CIP each own 50 percent of the Vineyard Wind joint venture.
Iberdrola secured contracts to deliver 486 MW of electricity to Germany through the Baltic Eagle and Wikinger Sud offshore generating facilities, which are located in the Baltic Sea. CIP was awarded contracts to construct the Changfang and Xidao Wind farms, representing a combined capacity of 600MW, and CIP will also build the 300 MW Chongneng project on behalf of a joint venture comprised of CIP, China Steel and DGA. All projects are located off the Changhua coast in the Taiwan Strait.
“Iberdrola’s successful bid to invest $1.2 billion (U.S.) in two offshore wind projects in Germany secured 30 percent of the available capacity in a highly competitive auction,” said Laura Beane, President and CEO of Avangrid Renewables. “Iberdrola’s continued success in Europe, combined with Avangrid Renewables’ track record as a leading wind developer and operator across the United States, reflects the depth and breadth of the capabilities brought to the Vineyard Wind joint venture. In Germany, the Iberdrola projects will support hundreds of permanent Operations and Maintenance jobs on Rugen Island and create 3,000 construction jobs. This same potential exists for creating a new industry in the Commonwealth.”
“The three offshore wind energy projects in Taiwan represent a significant outcome for CIP in a new and fast-growing market for offshore wind in Southeast Asia,” said Torsten Lodberg Smed, Senior Partner with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. “CIP and its partners in Taiwan have made significant commitments to establish a local supply chain as a new industry begins to develop in the region. Vineyard Wind, which will be the first large-scale offshore wind project in the United States, has pledged similar efforts to kickstart a new clean energy industry in New England and along the Atlantic Seaboard. The proven global leadership of the Vineyard Wind joint venture in the global and domestic offshore wind sector will only grow as we expand operations, construction, and development across three continents.”
“The winning performance of Vineyard Wind’s shareholders in the European and Asian offshore wind energy markets demonstrates our company’s capacity to deliver substantial benefits of offshore wind off the coast of Massachusetts,” said Lars Thaaning Pedersen, CEO of Vineyard Wind. “Vineyard Wind’s partners collectively enjoy world-leading expertise in the offshore wind industry, and the addition of new projects in Europe and Taiwan will add to the experience, best practices and deep relations with the global supply chain that will be leveraged to the advantage of the Commonwealth as it seeks to kickstart a new American industry.”
Avangrid Renewables owns 100 percent of Kitty Hawk, an offshore wind lease off the coast of North Carolina. Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, one of the world’ leading clean energy investors, has significant offshore wind activities in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
With passage of An Act to Promote Energy Diversity in 2016, Massachusetts required the state’s EDCs to procure 1,600 megawatts (MW) of clean, offshore wind energy within the next decade, resulting in robust interest by developers to participate in the procurement process for long-term offshore wind contracts. The addition of 1,600 MW of low-carbon wind generation capacity will provide enough clean, homegrown energy to power the equivalent of more than 750,000 Massachusetts homes every year.