New York to Invest $500 Million in Offshore Wind Infrastructure

New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Jan. 5 announced a plan to enhance the state’s renewable energy footprint including an investment of $500 million in offshore wind infrastructure, as part of the 2022 State of the State. The plan calls for investments in offshore wind manufacturing and associated supply chain, and is expected to create new jobs and generate sustainable electricity to meet the state’s renewable energy goals.

The plan would build on over 6,800 direct jobs, $12.1 billion statewide economic impact, and more than 4.3 gigawatts of energy, and 4.3 gigawatts of energy, which is half of New York’s 2035 target of 9 gigawatts.The investment is expected to build a strong offshore wind energy market in the Eastern Seaboard.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) will begin procuring offshore wind projects in 2022, which are likely to total at least 2 gigawatts. As part of the measure, the state will also initiate “the New York State Cable Corridor” Study. This study will look at the feasibility of delivering at least 6 gigawatts of offshore wind energy directly to New York City and also identify cable corridors for offshore wind power plants and analyze major points of interconnection with the grid.

Also, the 130-megawatt South Fork Wind Farm, the state’s first offshore wind farm, is anticipated to begin construction in early 2022. Last November, the U.S. Interior Department approved the construction and operation of the project, a joint venture of Denmark-based rsted A/S and Eversource Energy, offshore Rhode Island. The decision marks the second federal approval of a commercial-scale offshore project, following the 800-megawatt Vineyard Wind I development off Massachusetts approved earlier this year.

Governor Hochul also announced to double the state’s energy storage target to at least 6 GW by 2030 to help integrate significant new volumes of variable renewable energy resources. NYSERDA will update its energy storage road map to meet the state’s target of 6 gigawatts of storage. The new road map will outline how to advance technology innovation, especially in long-duration energy storage.