The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) is involved in an initiative to bring more offshore wind (OSW) development to the Capital Region and beyond in New York state.
The agency, dedicated to driving economic growth in an eight-county region that includes Saratoga, Washington and Warren counties, said there are two companies that are working with the technology. Through them, CEG will help bring the energy source to the region.
“With Equinor and Ørsted/Eversource planning major offshore wind component manufacturing operations in the Capital Region, we have the wind at our back. We want to further build out here the supply chain for this emerging industry on the East Coast that will drive the creation of thousands of jobs,” said CEG Chief Economic Development Officer Katie Newcombe.
CEG promoted local OSW opportunities at the Business Network for Offshore Wind’s International Partnering Forum (IPF) in Richmond, Va., in August. IPF is the largest offshore wind conference in the Western hemisphere, bringing together the global offshore wind supply chain for business growth and networking opportunities.
At IPF, CEG and its partners looked to build on the momentum for the Capital Region’s emerging OSW component manufacturing industry created through the state’s awards of wind energy solicitation from 2019 (1,700MW) and 2020 (2,500MW).
As a result of these awards, Sunrise Wind, a joint venture of Ørsted A/S and Eversource Energy, plans to make advanced foundation components in the Capital Region. Equinor plans to manufacture concrete gravity-base foundations at the Port of Coeymans and at the Port of Albany it will create the nation’s first OSW tower and transition piece manufacturing facility for its projects. The Port of Albany OSW facility alone is expected to create up to 350 direct jobs.
Since 2018, CEG has been raising awareness with international OSW developers about the capabilities of the Capital Region’s ports while also readying a regional supply chain and workforce.
This work has included:
• Raising the Capital Region’s profile with international OEMs by participating in 11 OSW conferences.
• Working with NYSERDA and OEMs to build out the region’s OSW supply chain.
• Connecting local manufacturers with OSW original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
• Organizing the Virtual Offshore Wind Tour, presented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark and CEG.
• Assisting WRI Energy in Glens Falls make connections with the OSW industry.
• Highlighting Wind Energy R&D capabilities in the Capital Region.
For more information on CEG, visit www.ceg.org.