Ørsted pitches offshore wind project for State Pier in New London 

Greg Smith

New London ― Ørsted, the Danish energy company staging offshore wind projects at State Pier, announced Wednesday it has pitched a proposal for its biggest U.S. wind farm to date with New London as its base.

Ørsted submitted a proposal for the 1,184-megawatt Starboard Wind to both Connecticut and Rhode Island as part of a three-state wind solicitation in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island that was due Wednesday.

The Danish wind giant was one of four companies to announce bids in the tri-state solicitation. Avangrid, SouthCoast Wind and Vineyard Offshore also made proposals as part of an auction in which the three states combined could enter power purchase agreements of up to 6,800 megawatts of offshore wind power.

Vineyard Offshore, partnered with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, submitted a proposal to all three states for the 1,200-megawatt Vineyard Wind 2. That project would be located 29 miles south of Nantucket in Massachusetts, and would be staged in Salem, Mass., and have a grid connection in Montville by way of New London, the company said in a statement.

Avangrid, a member of the Iberdrola Group, has two proposals totaling 1,870 megawatts: the 791-megawatt New England Wind 1, formerly known as Bridgeport-based Park City Wind, and the 1,080-megawatt New England Wind 2. Avangrid is spearheading the development of the Vineyard Wind 1 project, which is currently under construction and will deliver power to the Massachusetts grid.

SouthCoast Wind said it plans to develop an offshore lease area in two phases with the potential to generate more than 2,400 MW of wind power, enough to power more than 1 million homes, in a lease area 30 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard and 20 miles south of Nantucket.

Ørsted said it planned to use State Pier for staging and assembly of its new wind farm, which would power up to 600,000 homes. Ørsted and partner Eversource have already committed to using the newly revamped State Pier, which it leases, for work on three offshore wind projects. The 12-turbine South Fork Wind project in New York is already completed and State Pier is now prepping for Revolution Wind, which will be the first to deliver power to Connecticut.

“The (Starboard Wind) project would bring nearly $420 million of direct investment and expenditure to Connecticut, driving in-state and regional job creation while bolstering State Pier’s key role in the U.S. offshore wind supply chain,” Ørsted said in a statement.

Wednesday’s deadline for the bids was a cause for celebration by environmental groups like the Sierra Club and the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters, whose members gathered at Muddy Waters Cafe on Bank Street for a pep rally of sorts in a city now known as the epicenter of the state’s offshore wind industry.

News of Ørsted’s proposal had not been announced at the time of the morning gathering at Muddy Waters.

“This is really the moment that we’re making a big transition. Offshore wind is really the largest source of renewable energy we have available. We’re excited,” said Samantha Dynowski, state director of the Connecticut chapter of the Sierra Club.

Connecticut has a goal of decarbonizing its electricity grid by 2040. Dynowski said the more than 50 aging fossil fuel power plants in the state present an opportunity to transition to renewable energy as those power plants go offline.

At the moment, the state has just one contract for offshore wind power. That contract is with Ørsted and Eversource for a 304-megawatt portion of the 704-megawatt Revolution Wind offshore farm now under construction and whose turbines will soon be assembled and shipped from State Pier.

The state hasn’t gone out to bid for new offshore wind projects since 2019 when the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection chose Park City Wind and a proposal to build a 804-megawatt wind farm off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard. Avangrid, the developer of the project, pulled out of that contract because of soaring costs that have hit the offshore wind industry over the past year. Other companies has followed suit, blaming rising interest rates and supply chain issues.

New guidance on the federal tax credits available for offshore wind farms announced last week have advocates optimistic that offshore wind companies now have better incentives to build their projects. Earlier this month, Ørsted and Eversource secured federal approval for Sunrise Wind, a 924-megawatt offshore wind farm in New York that is expected to provide power to 320,000 homes in that state.

Connecticut, in this latest procurement for offshore wind power, can decide to secure up to 2,000 more megawatts of power. The state has also teamed up with Massachusetts and Rhode Island through a memorandum of understanding signed last year that is the first of its kind in the country. Under terms of the agreement, offshore wind companies were encouraged to make multi-state proposals.

The state is expected to announce selected projects in August. Further details of the Starboard Wind proposal were not immediately available.

“What’s at stake is up to 6,800 megawatts of clean renewable energy, more than triple of what’s already in the pipeline,” said Charles Rothenberger, climate and energy attorney for Save the Sound, an environmental group.

That amount of energy, the total possible between all three states, will power millions of homes and is equivalent to taking 3 million cars off the road, Rothenberger said.

The multi-state agreement, Rothenberger said, has a requirement for developers submitting bids to pledge funding toward an environmental mitigation fund that also benefits commercial fishermen. That agreement is for $5,000 for every kilowatt of power, he said.

New London Mayor Michael Passero said the $300 million public-private partnership spent to rehab State Pier, despite angst over cost increases and delays, appears to have been a sound investment by Gov. Ned Lamont considering the potential work the site could host in coming years for the burgeoning offshore wind industry.

After the news of Ørsted’s bid was announced, Passero said in a statement that “New London is the Northeast’s offshore wind hub, and Ørsted is a large part of the reason why.”

Ulysses Hammond, the interim executive director of the Connecticut Port Authority, said Wednesday that New London’s port remains attractive to offshore wind developers not only because of the public-private partnership that led to infrastructure improvements, but because of its close proximity to federal lease areas and lack of obstructions, such as bridges, to the pier.

As part of the bid for Starboard Wind, Ørsted said in a statement that it planned to fund a range of community investments and partnerships in the state, “including $50 million to support the state’s workforce and supplier diversity, inclusive workforce training, innovation, higher education and research, environmental justice, and biodiversity.”

David Hardy, chief executive officer of Ørsted’s American division, said in a statement that it considered Connecticut a “critical hub” in the U.S. offshore wind market “thanks to its early investments and foresight.”

Plans for offshore wind power blow back into New England

Jan Ellen Spiegel

Offshore wind is making its return to New England.

Nearly a year after some of the region’s largest offshore wind developers began making noises about pulling out of their projects because of increased costs, and six months after they actually did, a new round of bidding coordinated among three states appears to show that interest in developing offshore wind is still strong, even with larger price tags.

A three-state solicitation by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island received project proposals from four different developers by the Wednesday deadline, two of which essentially rebid the projects they’d pulled out of.

The total power submitted is about 5,570 megawatts, a good bit shy of the 6,800 megawatt limit set by the states. By way of comparison, 6,800 megawatts would be equivalent to more than three Millstones, the nuclear power plant that is the largest power generator in New England.

Charles Rothenberger, clean energy attorney with Save the Sound, an environmental advocacy group, called the nearly 5,600 megawatts “a substantial down payment on what we’ll need. It’s within striking distance of what the total solicitation was, so I would call that a robust solicitation,” he said. “Obviously, the devil will be in the details. I’m sure people will be looking very closely at the bid price for these projects.”

Kate Sinding Daly, senior vice president of law and policy at the Conservation Law Foundation called the proposals a significant step towards addressing climate change by reducing carbon emissions from the electricity sector.

“I think this is enough to ensure that the dirtiest, polluting power plants in New England are shut down,” she said. “That’s because (offshore wind) is going to be able to displace the need to fire up oil plants on the coldest winter days when gas is in high demand. And offshore wind is going to outcompete gas and that’s going to have immediate climate and public health impacts for the region.”

Offshore wind is not an intermittent energy source like solar – which only operates when the sun is shining. Offshore wind is considered variable, which means it always operates, though at different levels. Some of the worst weather can produce the most wind.

To Connecticut’s disadvantage, only one of the proposals designates the port of New London for construction and staging of the project. The rest plan to use ports in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection declined to comment on that, providing a statement that noted it would be reviewing the proposals.

Given Connecticut’s mandate for a zero-carbon grid by 2040, there’s almost no question the state will go with one or more of the projects. Their prices won’t be known until after the choices are made, but it stands to reason they will be higher than the earlier projects — though part of the point of the three-state solicitation was to get economies of scale that would subdue prices, at least a little.

Decisions on which projects will move forward are expected this summer.

The largest set of proposals came from Avangrid — parent of United Illuminating and the American arm of the Spain-based energy powerhouse Iberdrola. Avangrid’s Vineyard Wind 1 project off Massachusetts is under construction and already delivering power to that state.

Avangrid had pulled out of an 804-megawatt project for Connecticut called Park City Wind, which included jobs and port development in Bridgeport. It also pulled out of a 1,200-megawatt project in Massachusetts called Commonwealth Wind.

The cause was global economic conditions brought on by COVID, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing inflation and supply chain problems. Several developers on the East Coast either pulled out of projects or tried to renegotiate their terms.

Avangrid rejiggered both projects for its new bid. Park City is now New England Wind 1, at 791 megawatts. Commonwealth is New England Wind 2, at 1,080 megawatts. Avangrid is pushing 1 as its premier project.

In a statement, Avangrid CEO Pedro Azagra called the project shovel-ready and “prepared to start construction as soon as next year. With nearly all local, state, and federal permits in hand, all interconnection rights secured, and a Project Labor Agreement signed with a skilled, local union workforce, Avangrid is ready to go.”

Bridgeport still figures in as the project’s operations and maintenance base. The jobs there would be permanent, as opposed to construction jobs. It’s unknown how many there would be, but they would not be needed until the project is running, closer to 2030.

The construction and manufacturing jobs and economic development for the project will be in Massachusetts, however. And the project includes small power purchase components for Boston and a 20-community municipal power collective in that state. New England Wind 2 features a subsea cable manufacturing operation, also in Massachusetts.

There’s no saying if Connecticut will choose to buy any of the power from New England Wind 1 or 2, or from the Connecticut-specific project Avangrid also submitted. The state has been authorized since 2019 to purchase up to 2,000 megawatts of offshore wind. Park City had been the first purchase towards that goal. Its cancellation put the state back to zero.

An earlier offshore wind project, Revolution Wind, pre-dated that authorization and is underway. It will supply 300 megawatts for Connecticut and 400 for Rhode Island. That was the first multi-state offshore wind purchase.

Another proposal came from Vineyard Offshore, which is already developing two areas off New England and New York and a third off northern California. It partnered with Avangrid on Vineyard Wind 1. The new proposal would be Vineyard Wind 2, providing 1,200 megawatts. Construction and staging would be in Salem, Mass., and the port of Providence in Rhode Island with operation and maintenance in New Bedford, Mass. Only the interconnection would be in Connecticut.

“By making effective use of ports, facilities, and interconnection points throughout the region, Vineyard Wind 2 offers the most economic project configuration possible while delivering economic benefits for all three states,” Vineyard Offshore CEO Alicia Barton said in a statement.

Ørsted, which is already heavily involved in offshore wind development in the Northeast, also submitted proposals. It is proposing a 1,184 megawatt project called Starboard Wind for Connecticut or Rhode Island, or as joint project. The project would use the State Pier in New London for staging and construction.

Nicole Verdi, who heads up Ørsted’s government relations team in New England, said sticking with State Pier would create more economic development and jobs in New London.

“That’s really a key and important component of this bid for Connecticut, and we see it as an opportunity,” she said. “We’ve been in New London for the past few years. We’ve been partnering with different folks in Connecticut for the past few years. We really want to build on those partnerships and build on those relationships.”

Ørsted, originally partnered with Eversource, had invested some $100 million to prepare the pier for offshore wind work. Eversource since has gotten out of the offshore wind business, with Ørsted buying most of its stakes. New London is currently handling at least some of the staging and construction for three projects that are underway or, in the case of South Fork Wind off Long Island, also Ørsted’s project — was completed as of mid-March. The 132 megawatts generated by that project feed about 70,000 homes on Long Island.

Just last week, a clarification from the U.S. Department of Treasury allowed ports like New London that are considered energy communities to take advantage of a bonus tax credit for offshore wind work, helping to lower costs further.

The final project proposal is a rebid of SouthCoast Wind’s 1,200 megawatt project. The lease area for the project could handle another 1,200 megawatts. The project would be based in New Bedford, Mass., with the power interconnections traveling through Rhode Island into Massachusetts.

Vineyard Offshore Submits Proposal for Vineyard Wind 2

Kimberly Warner-Cohen

Vineyard Offshore has submitted a proposal for a 1,200 MW offshore wind project to Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island in response to the states’ solicitation for up to  6,800 MW of offshore wind capacity. 

“As the team that developed Vineyard Wind 1, the nation’s first commercial-scale offshore wind  project, Vineyard Offshore knows how to deliver offshore wind to New England, and that’s by  earning the trust of the communities we work in,” says Vineyard Offshore CEO Alicia Barton.  

“Our project will deliver more than $2 billion in economic benefits, create opportunities for workers and local businesses, and build on partnerships with local governments, organizations, and institutions across all three states, and we have the local support to show for it.” 

The proposed facility will be located 29 miles south of Nantucket in lease area OCS-522, which is held by funds managed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, for which Vineyard Offshore serves as U.S. development partner.  

Project investments include offshore construction in Salem, Mass.; sourcing foundation components in Providence, R.I.; grid interconnection in Montville, Conn. and O&M in New Bedford, Mass. 

The project is slated to provide up to $37.5 million in directly funded initiatives to promote a diverse and inclusive offshore wind workforce and supply chain.

Norwich Public Utilities’ proposed budget would drop by $3.89 million next year

Claire Bessette

Norwich ― Norwich Public Utilities officials presented a proposed $105.9 million 2024-25 budget for all four of its service divisions that calls for a decrease in spending of $3.89 million, a 3.67% drop from this year’s budget.

The budget decrease mainly reflects a dramatic reduction in the cost of purchased wholesale electricity and natural gas, NPU officials said Wednesday, despite next year being “a historic level of construction” for the city-owned utility that provides electricity, natural gas, water and sewer services.

A five-year, $200 million upgrade of the city sewage treatment plant started this year, and planned major upgrades to the city’s drinking water and natural gas systems are budgeted next year.

The proposed budget presented to the Board of Public Utilities Commission includes $108.5 million for capital projects, including $82.33 million for the sewage treatment plan, $14.35 million for gas and water main upgrades and $2.2 million in water storage improvements.

The increase in capital projects led to the proposal to hire five additional employees, including two engineers, two water distribution system operators and one maintenance mechanic, which would bring the total staff to 157 employees.

Wholesale purchased natural gas is budgeted at $2.5 million, down from $5.6 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year, and purchased power cost is budgeted at $31.8 million, down from $35.5 million this year.

The drop mainly is due to the dramatic reduction in the cost of purchased wholesale power and natural gas. Those decreases come after spikes in wholesale power costs in recent years, caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and gas line transmission issues.

In one way, those past wholesale cost spikes will benefit the city, with a record $10.3 million revenue sharing payment to the City of Norwich based on past NPU gross revenues. By city charter, NPU is required to turn over 10% of its gross revenues to the City of Norwich each year. The amount of next year’s payment is based on audited budget figures from NPU’s 2022-23 fiscal year.

The payment is up by $1.2 million over last year’s amount, “the highest payment in NPU’s history to the city,” NPU spokesman Chris Riley said.

NPU General Manager Chris LaRose said the utility’s electricity and natural gas customer load is increasing, which contributed to the increased payment to the city, but the increase mainly reflects the past higher cost of power and natural gas.

NPU has budgeted $659,000 for economic development expenses, including $265,000 to fund the operations of the Norwich Community Development Corp., the city’s economic development agency, up from $250,000 this year. The remaining $394,000 budgeted for economic development is not allocated to any specific costs and would require board approval to spend the money, LaRose said.

The Board of Public Utilities Commissioners did not act on the proposed budget. NPU officials will present the proposed budget to the City Council during a workshop Tuesday, and the utilities commission is expected to vote on the budget either at its April 23 or May 28 meeting.