Vineyard Wind Breaks Ground on First-in-the-Nation Commercial Scale Offshore Windfarm
CEREMONIAL GROUNDBREAKING MARKS HISTORIC MOMENT IN NATION’S CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION
PROJECT WILL CREATE JOBS, PROVIDE CLEAN AND COST-EFFECTIVE ENERGY AND DRAMATICALLY REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS
(NEW BEDFORD, MA) – Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Avangrid Renewables, a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), today broke ground on Vineyard Wind 1, the nation’s first commercial scale offshore wind farm. The 800-megawatt (MW) project, located 15 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, will generate electricity for more than 400,000 homes and businesses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, create 3,600 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) job years, save customers $1.4 billion over the first 20 years of operation, and is expected to reduce carbon emissions by more than 1.6 million metric tons per year, the equivalent of taking 325,000 cars off the road annually.
A ceremony to commemorate the event was held at Covell’s Beach in Barnstable, the site where two cables will make landfall and connect to the grid at a substation further inland on Cape Cod.
The event was attended by approximately 200 people, all observing appropriate COVID protocols, including Department of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Governor Charlie Baker, Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides, State House Speaker Ron Mariano, Senator Julian Cyr, Vineyard Wind CEO Lars T. Pedersen, Senior Partner & Co-founder of CIP Christian T. Skakkebæk, Head of Iberdrola’s Global Renewables Business, Xabier Viteri, CEO of AVANGRID Dennis V. Arriola, as well as other state and local officials and community advocates.
“Many people have worked extremely hard to make today possible, a day where we turn forward thinking into action,” said Vineyard Wind CEO Lars T. Pedersen. “From the environmental and community activists to our elected leadership at the local, state and federal level, it’s taken all of us, pulling in the same direction and not being deterred by setbacks both large and small. By focusing on our ultimate goal – developing clean, cost-effective energy that will cut carbon pollution and create thousands of jobs in the process – we never lost sight of what mattered most, and we ultimately have a better project as a result. I want to thank everyone for their commitment to and belief in this industry and look forward to celebrating many more milestones in the months ahead.”
“Vineyard Wind is on a par with the most ambitious offshore developments globally, including those developed by the Iberdrola Group. Not many countries have the ambition to launch their first project at a scale that will power 400,000 homes and create 3,600 jobs,” said Ignacio Galán, Chairman and CEO of Iberdrola and Chairman of AVANGRID. “With 15 years of offshore wind leadership, Iberdrola and Avangrid are more than ready to help the US benefit from the substantial opportunities of offshore wind including economic investment and job creation. Our offshore developments in New England and North Carolina/Virginia could represent a total investment well above $15 billion in the coming years.”
“This is an historic moment as we begin constructing the first major offshore wind project in the nation,” said AVANGRID CEO Dennis V. Arriola. “We are proud to lead the way to a cleaner energy future by launching the offshore wind industry. The Vineyard Wind 1 project will significantly reduce carbon emissions so that we can have cleaner air and healthier communities, while also creating good paying union jobs and driving economic investment. The clean energy future is no longer a dream – it is now a reality.”
“The US offshore wind industry holds tremendous promise for both job creation and reducing carbon pollution, and today’s ground breaking, while historic, is just the first of many steps the industry will take as it grows,” said Christian T. Skakkebæk, Senior Partner & Co-founder of CIP. “CIP is excited to be a part of this first project, and we look forward to continuing to invest in and build out the offshore wind industry in the United States.”
“Vineyard Wind 1 represents a historic milestone for advancing our nation’s clean energy production. This project and others across the country will create robust and sustainable economies that lift up communities and support good-paying jobs, while also ensuring future generations have a livable planet,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “The Interior Department is committed to responsibly accelerating our nation’s transition to a clean energy future, and doing so in coordination with our partners, stakeholders, Tribes and ocean users to avoid and reduce potential impacts as much as we can.”
Under the Project Labor Agreement (PLA) with the Southeast Massachusetts Building Trades, the work being done on site is using local union labor. The PLA ensures that at least 500 of the jobs created during the construction phase of the project will be filled by local tradespeople and includes aggressive hiring targets for women and black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC).
“Massachusetts is proud to launch an entirely new industry in the United States by building this historic, first-in-the-nation project, and by officially beginning onshore construction on the Vineyard Wind project, we are charting a new course for clean energy and climate action,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Vineyard Wind will provide enough affordable clean electricity to power 400,000 homes while creating hundreds of local jobs, and our Administration is focused on maximizing the economic opportunity for the Commonwealth by filing legislation that would direct a historic investment of $750 million to advance our ambitious climate goals and build the clean energy workforce of the future.”
“The beginning of construction of the Vineyard Wind project marks an important milestone for the Commonwealth, and brings new opportunities for economic growth and job creation,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito. “Massachusetts’ historic maritime workforce, our educational institutions, and our port assets make our state uniquely positioned to build the first-commercial scale project and help the industry succeed in the U.S. market.”
“Clean and affordable energy, local good-paying union jobs, new investments in communities up and down the Massachusetts coast—that’s the promise of new offshore wind development, and today, that promise is being kept,” said Senator Edward J. Markey. “This is the kind of investment from Vineyard Wind that will allow Massachusetts to keep leading the nation towards a clean energy economy. I commend everyone involved in this landmark project for their dedication and look forward to celebrating many more of these occasions in the future as we fulfill our offshore wind goals.”
“Today makes one thing clear: thanks to the support of President Biden and Secretary Haaland, Southeastern Massachusetts is leading the nation on offshore wind, and we’re showing the rest of the nation how to do it right,” said Congressman Bill Keating. “Through strong local partnerships, community engagement, and guaranteeing the creation of good, union jobs for local workers, Vineyard Wind is defining the path forward for successful offshore wind development throughout the United States. I express my thanks and congratulations to Vineyard Wind for their leadership, and I am most excited for the working men and women who will benefit from these new, green jobs that will ensure that they can live, work, and raise a family in Southeastern Massachusetts.”
“Vineyard Wind’s groundbreaking solidifies the Bay State’s clean energy leadership,” said Congressman Jake Auchincloss. “This wind farm will propel job creation and power homes across the Bay State.”
“From the outset of this project, the Massachusetts Senate has been proud to support offshore wind as a sustainable source of energy for the Commonwealth,” said Massachusetts Senate President Karen E. Spilka. “At a time when action on climate change is urgent, our partnership with Vineyard Wind has proven that it can unlock economic development opportunities as well. To our state, this project means good, middle-class jobs and clean, affordable energy; to our world, it means that offshore wind is an increasingly viable alternative to fossil fuels. I thank Vineyard Wind for their commitment to Massachusetts, and I look forward to our continued working relationship.”
“Today’s groundbreaking on the nation’s first commercial scale offshore wind farm represents a historic step forward in our clean energy future. This project will power hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses with clean energy and create thousands of jobs right here in the Commonwealth in the process,” said Speaker Ronald J. Mariano. “I am proud of the work being done in Massachusetts to meet our emissions reduction goals that are necessary in the fight against climate change, and I look forward to continuing our progress in making Massachusetts a regional hub for the offshore wind industry.”
“As the first-mover on offshore wind, Massachusetts has set many milestones, but the start of onshore construction for the Vineyard Wind project marks the beginning of a historic new chapter for this industry in the United States,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides.“Offshore wind is the centerpiece of our strategy to achieve Net Zero emissions in 2050, and building this first project will not only put this industry on the path for long-term success in the United States, but will help us power a green recovery that drives investment in our historic port areas, creates well-paying local jobs, and provides new economic opportunities for underserved communities.”
The project will utilize 62, 13MW General Electric Haliade-X wind turbines that will be connected to an offshore substation, where the power will be transferred to two export cables that will make landfall at Covell’s beach and connect to the grid at an inland substation. As a result of the cable laying, the Town of Barnstable and Vineyard Wind are collaborating on a long-awaited sewer improvement project, saving the town millions of dollars.
Vineyard Wind 1 will begin delivering clean energy to Massachusetts in 2023.
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About Vineyard Wind
Vineyard Wind LLC is an offshore wind development company that is building the first commercial-scale offshore wind energy project in the U.S., to be located 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard. Vineyard Wind, based in New Bedford, Massachusetts, is 50 percent owned by funds of Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and 50 percent by Avangrid Renewables, a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR). For more information, visit www.vineyardwind.com.