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Rhode Island News

17 Mar 2024

Launch Ceremony Held for A-O-S' New Jones Act CTV Gripper

(Photo: American Offshore Services)

An official launch ceremony was held to celebrate the commissioning of a new Jones Act compliant crew transfer vessel (CTV) built for American Offshore Services (A-O-S)—the company's first.Constructed by Blount Boats in Warren, R.I., the 100-foot-long aluminum catamaran is owned and operated by A-O-S, a joint venture formed in 2020 by leading European CTV operator Northern Offshore Services (N-O-S) and U.S.-based investment firm OIC.The vessel will support Ørsted and Eversource’s portfolio of offshore wind farms in the Northeast…

26 Feb 2024

Will 2024 Settle the Turbulence of US Offshore Wind?

(Photo: Avangrid)

There is no denying that 2023 was a challenging year for the U.S. offshore wind market. Citing macroeconomic factors including high inflation, rising interest rates, and supply chain bottlenecks, Ørsted announced on October 31 that they were ceasing the development of the Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 projects, which were scheduled for construction off the coast of New Jersey. Unfortunately, the troubling news has continued into the new year, with Equinor and BP announcing on…

15 Feb 2024

Weather Data Gathering Project Underway for US Offshore Wind

Photo by Matt Brooking,  University of Albany

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have launched an 18-month initiative to gather extensive weather, ocean, and wildlife data near the sites of active offshore wind farms and lease areas off the coast of the Northeast United States.This effort, which is part of the third phase of the Wind Forecast Improvement Project (WFIP3), seeks to gather high-quality data to improve the design and operation of offshore wind turbines and wind farms.

18 Jan 2024

Three New England States Extend Offshore Wind Solicitation Due Date

© Fokke Baarssen / Adobe Stock

Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island extended on Thursday the date bids are due in the states' next offshore wind solicitations from Jan. 31 to March 27.Offshore wind is expected to play a critical role in U.S. President Joe Biden's and several states' plans to decarbonize the power grid and combat climate change.But offshore wind industry had a tough time in 2023 with some developers cancelling contracts to sell power in several states because their proposed projects were no longer economic due to soaring inflation…

19 Jan 2024

US Plugs in First Large Offshore Wind Farm as Developers Play Catch-up

(A GE Haliade-X turbine stands in the Vineyard Wind 1 project area south of Martha’s Vineyard. (Photo: Worldview Films, courtesy Vineyard Offshore)

The U.S. offshore wind industry reached an important milestone on January 2 when Vineyard Wind 1, the country’s first large scale project, supplied first power to the Massachusetts grid.“As the nation’s first utility-scale offshore wind farm this is a fairly momentous event,” Ken Kimmell, Chief Development Officer for Avangrid, the Iberdrola subsidiary co-developing the project with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), told Reuters Events.The turbine will be joined by 61 additional turbines to provide 806 MW of power to the grid by the end of the year…

11 Jan 2024

Rebuilding the Foundations of US Offshore Wind

© Fokke Baarssen / Adobe Stock

As we enter a New Year, the memories of the shocks to the foundations to the U.S. offshore wind segment remain fresh. In short, supply chain inflation and capacity/availability, interest rate increases, and tax credit monetization have been the key themes highlighted by developers to explain why many projects became commercially unviable.Several Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states have reacted rapidly, accepting the termination of power sales & purchase agreements and allowing the canceled projects to be rebid into new solicitations.

28 Dec 2023

Bristol Harbor Group Promotes Eling

Daniel P. Eling (Photo: BHGI)

Bristol, R.I. based naval architecture and marine engineering form Bristol Harbor Group, Inc. (BHGI) announced it has promoted a member of its team, Daniel P. Eling, P.E., to a managerial position.Eling, a senior naval architect with six years of experience at the firm, has been promoted to the role of engineering manager.Eling holds a Bachelor of Science in Ocean Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of Rhode Island.

26 Dec 2023

US Offshore Wind Poised for 2024 Success After Turbulent 2023

© Cavan / Adobe Stock

The U.S. offshore wind industry is eying a brighter 2024, with work expected to start on several projects following a year marked by stalled developments and billions of dollars in write-offs.The offshore wind industry is expected to play a major role in helping several states and U.S. President Joe Biden meet goals to decarbonize the power grid and combat climate change.But progress slowed in 2023 after offshore developers canceled contracts to sell power in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Jersey…

07 Dec 2023

US Gives Final Nod to Rhode Island's $1.5 Billion Offshore Wind Farm

(Photo: Orsted)

The U.S Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council on Thursday approved the construction of a $1.5 billion offshore wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island.The project, Revolution Wind, is run by Danish company Orsted and U.S.-based Eversource, and would bring a total of 704 megawatts (MW) clean energy to Connecticut and Rhode Island.Another offshore project by the two wind energy developers, the South Fork wind farm off the coast of New York, delivered its first power to the state's power grid on Wednesday.Offshore wind development has been a priority for the Biden administration.

31 Oct 2023

US Offshore Wind Writedowns Seen Soaring with Orsted Earnings

© Cavan / Adobe Stock

European energy companies, including Denmark's Orsted, will likely write down more of their U.S. offshore wind investments this week after BP and Equinor booked $840 million in impairments in recent days.Orsted, the world's largest offshore wind developer, said in August it may see impairments of 16 billion Danish crowns ($2.3 billion) on its U.S. offshore developments due to supply chain problems, soaring interest rates and a lack of new tax credits.Orsted, which was not immediately available for comment…

19 Oct 2023

Offshore Wind Developers Likely to Cancel Some Contracts After NY Decision

© nblxer / Adobe Stock

Developers in the U.S. offshore wind industry will likely cancel some power sales contracts in New York after the state last week denied passing on more of the costs to consumers, but major projects off Massachusetts and Rhode Island are set to start up later this year.Several states and U.S. President Joe Biden's administration consider offshore wind to be a key part of their plans to transition away from fossil fuels for energy, create jobs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.Last week…

09 Oct 2023

The Headwinds of US Offshore Wind Development

© nblxer / Adobe Stock

On March 29, 2021, President Biden announced his ambitious plan to deploy 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power – enough energy to power 10 million U.S. homes – by 2030. The plan would leverage authorities under the Department of Interior, Energy, and Commerce to guide “more than $12 billion per year in capital investment in projects on both U.S. coasts, create tens of thousands of good-paying, union jobs, with more than 44,000 workers employed in offshore wind by 2030 and nearly 33,000 additional jobs in communities supported by offshore wind activity.” The U.S.

09 Oct 2023

US Committed to Tackling Offshore Wind Challenges -Intelatus

© Chirapriya / Adobe Stock

Despite the negative headlines around the longer-term prospects for the U.S. offshore wind segment, business intelligence company Intelatus Global Partners sees continued efforts by the federal government and, in particular, the East Coast states to find solutions to the challenges faced by the industry as whole, which can be grouped under three headings: high inflation, supply chain development and high interest rates.On the side of the federal government, offshore wind leasing and permitting is being prioritized over oil and gas development.

04 Oct 2023

New England States Buy Offshore Wind Power as US Industry Struggles

© Cavan / Adobe Stock

Three U.S. states in New England - Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut - on Wednesday agreed to jointly procure offshore wind power as soaring interest rates and rising equipment and labor costs have made some projects uneconomic.By joining forces, the states hope to counter the pain rippling across the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry, which is expected to play a key part in decarbonizing the power sector and revitalizing domestic manufacturing.Earlier this week, another…

03 Oct 2023

General Dynamics Electric Boat Wins $967 Million Contract

General Dynamics Electric Boat, a business unit of General Dynamics, wasn awarded a $967 million contract modification from the U.S. Navy for Lead Yard Support and Development and Design efforts for Virginia-class fast-attack submarines.The cost-plus-fixed fee modification to a previously awarded contract totals $967,185,528. Work will be performed in Groton, Connecticut; McLeansville, North Carolina; Newport News, Virginia; and Newport and Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Work is expected to be completed by October 2024. This contract was awarded on September 29. 2023.Virginia-class submarines are designed for the full range of 21st-century mission requirements…

18 Sep 2023

Ørsted CEO Says US Offshore Wind Targets Still Possible But Not Easy

Ørsted CEO Mads Nipper (Photo: Ørsted)

U.S. President Joe Biden's plan to deploy 30,000 megawatts (MW) of offshore wind by 2030 is still possible, although not easy, the CEO of Ørsted, the world's largest offshore wind developer, said on Monday at the Climate Week NYC event in New York.The remarks by Ørsted CEO Mads Nipper come as soaring costs and supply chain delays have increasingly cast doubt on the Biden administration's goal, a cornerstone of its plan to fight climate change. The Danish company said at the end of August that it may see U.S.

28 Aug 2023

Offshore Wind: US Shipbuilders Answering the Call

From left to right: Lasse Petterson, CEO of Great Lakes Dredge and Dock; Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa.; President Joe Biden; and Steinar Nerbovik, CEO of Philadelphia Shipyard (Photo: Philly Shipyard)

It’s a big deal when a U.S. president visits an American shipyard, and these trips always send a message. When President Obama spoke at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding in 2013, he warned of the consequences of sequestration. President Trump’s 2020 speech at Fincantieri Marinette Marine touted a $5.5 billion naval contract that gave a welcome boost to the Wisconsin shipyard and its supply chain partners. Most recently, President Biden traveled to Philadelphia’s Philly Shipyard…

22 Aug 2023

Revolution Wind: US Approves Fourth Major Offshore Wind Project

(Photo: Ørsted)

The U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) on Tuesday approved the construction of a 704-megawatt (MW) wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island, the fourth major offshore wind project the agency has greenlit as the Biden administration tries to meet a goal of bringing 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power online by 2030.The Revolution Wind project about 15 nautical miles southeast of Point Judith, R.I. is being developed by Eversource and Ørsted as Rhode Island and Connecticut's first utility-scale offshore wind farm…

21 Aug 2023

US Offshore Wind: Long-term Outlook Bright Despite Short-term Concerns

© Dragon Claws / Adobe Stock

While trouble areas continue to emerge in the young U.S. offshore wind industry, analysts at Intelatus Global Partners maintain an optimistic outlook for the industry in the long term.The business intelligence and consulting firm said in its latest U.S. Offshore Wind Report that it sees long-term foundations for the U.S. offshore wind sector solidifying, referencing several positive advancements such as the recently announced auction of three shallow water lease areas with at least 3.6 gigawatts (GW) of capacity in the Gulf of Mexico at the end of the month…

04 Aug 2023

Dominion Sees Virginia Offshore Wind Farm Complete in Late 2026

Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind pilot project (Photo: Stephen Boutwell / BOEM)

U.S. energy company Dominion Energy said on Friday that its roughly $10 billion Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project was on budget and on track for completion in late 2026.The company said in its second quarter earnings presentation that it expected to get a Record of Decision from the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Management (BOEM) in the second half of 2023. The Record of Decision is a step in the process before construction can start.The roughly 2,600-megawatt (MW) project consists of 176 turbines…

21 Jul 2023

Senesco Launches Jones Act CTV WindServe Genesis

The WindServe Genesis is launched a the Senesco Marine shipyard in Rhode Island (Photo: Senesco Marine)

Senesco Marine on Friday launched the new Jones-Act-compliant crew transfer vessel WindServe Genesis.WindServe Marine, a sister company to the North Kingstown, R.I. shipbuilder—both part of the Reinauer Group—will operate the CTV. The vessel will initially provide crew transfer support during the construction phase at Ørsted's Southfork Wind project off the coast of Long Island. The vessel will later go on to to work at the developer's Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island and Connecticut…

18 Jul 2023

U.S. Navy Shipbuilders & Disaggregated, Dispersed Production

The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine, USS Columbia (SSN 771) moors alongside the submarine tender USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) in Apra Harbor, Naval Base Guam, Jan. 4.  (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Joshua M. Tolbert)

With a lame-duck CNO, a divided Congress and the impending launch of the next Presidential election cycle, America’s naval market is locked into something of a fragile and fearful autopilot, cruising inexorably towards whatever excitement 2024 might bring.Materially, don’t expect much change: The demand for naval platforms will continue to outstrip available funding, meaning there will be little movement or growth in America’s major shipbuilding programs of record. The procurement outlines are already set.

05 Jul 2023

US Approves Construction for Orsted's Ocean Wind Project off New Jersey

© esbobeldijk / Adobe Stock

The Biden administration on Wednesday approved construction of an offshore windfarm that will generate 1,100 megawatts of power from up to 98 turbines off the coast of Atlantic City, New Jersey, becoming the third such project in the United States.Approval of Orsted's Ocean Wind by the Interior Department is the administration's latest move toward meeting its goal of developing 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind in the U.S.

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