New York City’s First Offshore Wind Port Begins Construction

Construction began on June 10 to transform the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT) in New York City into what would be the nation’s largest offshore wind port, according to a press release from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).

The facility will serve as the operations and maintenance hub for Empire Wind 1, an offshore wind project delivering 810 megawatts of renewable energy in its first phase to New York, enough to power nearly 500,000 Brooklyn homes. SBMT will also house an onshore substation to connect electricity from the offshore turbines to New York City’s grid at the Gowanus Substation in Brooklyn. Construction at SBMT to support Empire Wind 1 is anticipated to be completed by the end of 2026. In February, Equinor received approval from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for the construction and operation plan of its Empire Wind Project.

As part of the agreement finalized by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) in 2022, Equinor and the Sustainable South Brooklyn Marine Terminal L.P. will upgrade and develop the terminal to serve as the long-term operations and maintenance base for Empire Wind 1. Empire Wind 1 would be the first offshore wind project to connect directly to the city’s power grid.

In September 2021, New York City and NYCEDC launched a 15-year, $191 million Offshore Wind Vision Plan. Over the past year, significant strides have been made to establish the city as the nation’s leading offshore wind hub. By 2035, the offshore wind industry in New York City is expected to create up to 13,000 jobs. The SBMT project alone will generate over 1,000 union jobs during construction, 200 assembly jobs, and 50 permanent positions.

On June 4, NYSERDA and Equinor finalized a new contract for Empire Wind 1, offering various economic benefits to support development in New York City and across the state. The initiative increased funding for workforce and community development while significant investments are already underway in Sunset Park’s new Offshore Wind Learning Center, the Offshore Wind Innovation Hub, and the Offshore Wind Ecosystem Fund.

The development will help achieve the state’s goal of deploying 9,000 megawatts of offshore wind by 2035 and sourcing 70 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2030 under the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. New York City has also set ambitious goals of 100-percent clean electricity by 2040 and carbon neutrality by 2050.