Long Island News

Ørsted has installed and powered up all 12 turbines at the landmark South Fork project, and the first utility-scale U.S. offshore wind farm has started delivering power to Long Island and the Rockaways, offshore New York.The commissioning of the wind farm is in its final stage, and when at full capacity of 130 MW, it will generate enough renewable energy to power approximately 70,000 homes.The renewable energy is generated roughly 35 miles off the coast of Montauk, and will eliminate up to six million tons of carbon emissions over the life of the project…

New York officials on Thursday awarded provisional contracts to two proposed offshore wind projects under a program meant to support the embattled industry and keep the state's clean energy goals on track.The state selected a planned 810-megawatt project, Empire Wind 1, (developed by Equinor) and Sunrise Wind, a planned 924-megawatt project (developed by Orsted and Eversource).The closely watched solicitation by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)…

The United States’ Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved the Construction and Operations Plan (COP) for Equinor’s Empire Wind project, marking another milestone in advancing the New York offshore wind project.With this permitting action by BOEM secured, Empire Wind is on track to begin construction in its federal lease area off the southern coast of Long Island later this year. Already well advanced in planning and development, Empire Wind 1 could deliver first power to New Yorkers by 2026.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Thursday, granted a Clean Air Act permit to New York's Empire Offshore Wind owned by Equinor.The permit was given after an air quality analysis showed federal air quality standards would not be compromised during construction and operation of the project, the agency said."When built, this project is expected to generate more than 2,000 megawatts of electrical power for New York State – enough to power as many as a million homes,” said Regional Administrator Lisa F.

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.

Seatrium has issued an announcement confirming its contract for a 1,260MW offshore substation (OSS) platform for Empire Wind 2, valued at more than S$250 million, has been cancelled.Seatrium was awarded two contracts from Empire Offshore Wind LLC for the engineering, procurement, construction, offshore hook-up and commissioning of two OSS platforms for the Empire Wind 1 and 2. The offshore wind farms are located about 20 miles south of Long Island east of the Rockaways.Empire Offshore Wind LLC is a joint venture between Equinor and bp…

The U.S. Department of the Interior on Thursday approved the Empire Wind offshore project, owned by Equinor and BP, the sixth commercial-scale wind farm to be greenlit under President Joe Biden's administration.Empire Wind is among several offshore wind projects facing construction and financing cost blowouts that the troubled industry says would not be covered by existing power sales contracts, but it could be helped by a new auction planned by New York state.Along with Danish counterpart Orsted, Equinor and BP have taken a combined $5 billion of writedowns on U.S.

The first turbine has been installed at the South Fork Wind Farm offshore New York, developer Ørsted announced on Monday.The first of South Fork Wind’s 12 Siemens Gamesa wind turbine generators was hoisted into place by the offshore construction team at the project site 35 miles off Montauk, N.Y. Van Oord’s offshore installation vessel, the Aeolus, is installing the turbines. Turbine installation involves using a crane to place the steel turbine tower onto the foundation. The nacelle and rotor are then installed on top of the tower.

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…

There's a new player in the Jones Act crew transfer vessel (CTV) market: Blue Ocean Transfers (BOT), based on Long Island, N.Y.The McQuilling-Partners-owned company is planning to build a fleet of CTVs to support the U.S. offshore wind industry as it ramps up to meet the Biden administration's goal of 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind by 2030. "BOT is a marine logistics equipment manager, whose equipment is chartered and deployed by wind field developers and their suppliers," the company said in a statement.

The keel has been laid for the United States' first plug-in hybrid service operation vessel (SOV) at Edison Chouest Offshore's (ECO) LaShip Shipyard in Houma, La.Louisiana-based ECO has a 10-year charter agreement to operate the SOV for Empire Offshore Wind, a joint venture between Equinor and BP, starting form the mid-2020s.The 262-foot-long vessel will accommodate up to 60 wind turbine technicians for operations and maintenance work at the Empire Wind 1 and Empire Wind 2 offshore wind farms off the coast of Long Island…

U.S.-based shipping company Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) announced its support for women at SUNY Maritime College with a three-year pledge totaling nearly $90,000, in an effort to make strides in reducing the gender gap in the maritime industry and create equal opportunities for all. The funding will go towards scholarships for women and a student government organization at the college, Women of Maritime, which cadets launched to build community and bring more awareness to…

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…

Offshore service vessels, along with workboats serving harbors and inland rivers, have embarked on an industry-wide voyage toward reduced emissions of greenhouse gasses. Professor Craig Philip, a faculty member with Vanderbilt University’s Center for Transportation and Operational Resilience (VECTOR) and former CEO of Ingram Barge Company, provides this context: “The Maritime Sector has long provided shippers with the most fuel-efficient and sustainable freight transport option…

Offshore wind developers Ørsted and Eversource marked the sailaway of the first U.S.-built offshore wind substation, which departed a Texas fabrication facility Wednesday. The substation is transiting across the Gulf of Mexico and then up the East Coast for installation at the South Fork Wind project site in a few weeks.Kiewit Offshore Services, Ltd. (Kiewit), the largest offshore fabricator in the U.S., designed and built the substation, which will be deployed at Ørsted and Eversource’s South Fork Wind project serving Long Island…

$2 million for Suffolk County Community College to stimulate workforce training and redevelopment. At a recent meeting of the Corporate Committee of the Long Island Council of the Navy League of the United States, US Navy Command Master Chief Joshua Sturgill who is Command Senior Enlisted Leader for Team Submarines, announced a $2 million grant for Advanced Manufacturing Scholarships supported by the Navy’s Submarine Industrial Base. The $2 million grant was awarded to Suffolk…

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) on March 9 hosted a keel authentication ceremony at its Allanton Shipyard in Panama City, Fla. for a new 302-foot auto and passenger ferry for the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company.Steel cutting for ESG Hull 228 commenced in January 2023 and a delivery is scheduled for 2024. The ferry will operate between Bridgeport, Conn. and Port Jefferson, N.Y.The ferry is based on the P.T. Barnum and Grand Republic auto and passenger ferries that Eastern Shipbuilding Group previously constructed for McAllister Towing and Transportation Co…

WindServe Marine, a U.S. offshore wind support services company, has secured a loan from The Washington Trust Company, for the construction of three new 88-foot crew transfer vessels (CTV), recently commissioned by Ørsted, the largest offshore wind developer in the world. "Washington Trust was founded on the southwestern shoreline of Rhode Island and as a good corporate citizen, we are committed to protecting and preserving the local environment. Providing financing for alternative sources of energy that benefit this community aligns both with our business and sustainability benchmarks…

Climate change advocates and seafarers recently gathered for a small conference at the Hudson Valley Maritime Museum in Kingston, N.Y., to discuss the shipping industry’s struggle to achieve sustainability and environmental compliance.The setting, the hamlet of Rondout, N.Y. (within Kingston), holds significance as it was, ironically, a Hudson River port once considered the largest coal port in the world (yes, the world). In 1828, the opening of the Delaware and Hudson Canal enabled coal to be delivered from Pennsylvania to New York City.

Mobile, Ala. boatbuilder Silver Ships recently delivered a multi-mission Explorer 40 Landing Craft vessel to the Suffolk County Public Works Department located on New York's Long Island.Suffolk County Public Works Department oversees all county properties and projects while maintaining safe public navigations including waterways, bridges, docks, marinas, sewerage systems and more. The custom-built Explorer workboat’s primary purpose is to transport heavy machinery and equipment to further support the department's efforts in the waters located in and surrounding Suffolk County…

Baltimore-based Vane Brothers announced that its entire tugboat fleet has earned a valid Certificate of Inspection (COI) as part of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Subchapter M program.Subchapter M refers to federally regulated safety standards for inspected towing vessels. All applicable vessels are required to earn a valid COI by July.Vane Brothers president, C. Duff Hughes, said, “Vane Brothers appreciates the importance of safety to the company, our crews, and our customers. Our goal is zero spills and zero incidents…

Retlif Testing Laboratories, a globally recognized, independent EMC/EMI and environmental testing organization, welcomed New York State Congressman Andrew Garbarino to its secure facility for an escorted tour of their EMC (Electromagnetic Compatibility) and Environmental Simulation Services (ESS) laboratories. The tour was followed by a roundtable discussion in support of military contracting and defense manufacturing on Long Island, logistics and supply chain issues, and the…

Empire Offshore Wind, a joint venture between Equinor and BP, has awarded Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) a long-term service operations vessel charter. The vessel will service the Empire Wind offshore wind farm project located 15-30 miles southeast of Long Island.Edison Chouest Offshore's plug-in hybrid service operations vessel (SOV) will be the first in the US offshore wind sector capable of sailing partly on battery power.The vessel will accommodate up to 60 wind turbine technicians…