New Jersey contracts expand U.S. offshore wind energy initiative

On June 30, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU, Atlantic City) selected two companies, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind (Atlantic Shores) — a 50-50 joint venture between EDF Renewables North America (San Diego, Calif., U.S.) and Shell New Energies US (Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.) — and Ørsted A/S (Fredericia, Denmark) to develop offshore wind energy for New Jersey.

Per Atlantic Shore’s contract, the wind company will develop 1,510 megawatt (MW) in offshore wind energy, enough to power over 700,000 homes, as well as bring $848 million in guaranteed local economic benefits to the state. The company’s Lease Area is located approximately 10-20 miles off the coast of New Jersey between Atlantic City and Barnegat Light. NJBPU notes that this is the largest single project in New Jersey and the third largest in the U.S.

Atlantic Shores’ project, which aims to begin construction in 2024, includes a number of essential investments and initiatives, including an agreement to train and hire local workers for the construction and maintenance of the wind project, a 10 MW green hydrogen pilot with South Jersey Industries (Folsom) and a turbine nacelle assembly center to the New Jersey Wind Port. Over its lifetime, the wind project will create thousands of jobs.

The project also reportedly includes a number of investments in New Jersey’s top academic institutions, including Rutgers University, Stockton University and Rowan College, to cultivate the next generation of industry leaders.

Like Atlantic Shore’s contract, Ocean Wind 2 will reportedly play a significant role in helping the state reach goals of installing 7,500 MW of offshore wind capacity by 2035 and 100% clean energy by 2050.

“As offshore wind prepares to take off in the United States, this is a critical moment to lay the groundwork for workforce training and supply chain development. Our robust project includes a number of essential initiatives to train local workers and bring manufacturing jobs to the state that will ensure New Jersey workers and the local economy reap tremendous benefits,” says Joris Veldhoven, commercial and finance director at Atlantic Shores.

Similarly, NJBPU’s selected Ocean Wind 2, an offshore wind energy project proposed by Ørsted, for a 20-year Offshore Renewable Energy Credit (OREC) award. At 1,148 MW, the Ocean Wind 2 project will enable Ørsted to develop the remaining portion of its Ocean Wind federal lease area and will power more than half a million New Jersey homes. Ocean Wind 2 will be located adjacent to the company’s first offshore wind project, Ocean Wind (Ocean Wind 1), which was awarded by the NJBPU in 2019. Ocean Wind 1 is being developed in partnership with Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG, Newark, N.J., U.S.), which owns 25% equity in the project.

Like Atlantic Shore’s contract, Ocean Wind 2 will reportedly play a significant role in helping the state reach Governor Murphy’s goals of installing 7,500 MW of offshore wind capacity by 2035 and 100% clean energy by 2050. Together, NJBPU says Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 will deliver more than 2,200 MW of offshore wind to New Jersey.

Further, as part of Ørsted’s proposal, Ocean Wind 2 will contribute to an expansion of the EEW Paulsboro monopile manufacturing facility. The facility will be home to 500 full-time jobs and represents an investment of $250 million into southern New Jersey, Ørsted notes. Additionally, Ocean Wind 2 is said will generate more than $4.8 billion in net economic benefits for the state, to further develop a strong domestic supply chain.

With Ocean Wind 2, Ørsted is also bringing a commitment from leading industry partner, GE Renewables (Paris, France), to locate, what is said will be one of the country’s first offshore wind nacelle assembly facilities, in New Jersey. This facility will assemble the nacelles for Ocean Wind 2 and other offshore wind projects in the U.S. Ocean Wind 2 also offers significant investments for New Jersey’s environmental justice communities, the NJBPU notes. Ørsted has partnered with Zeem Solutions (New York., N.Y., U.S.) to rollout 50 electric drayage trucks, associated vehicle infrastructure and mobility training programs for area residents at the Port of Newark.

Ocean Wind 2 will also establish a new 10-year $1.5 million scholarship and career development program with the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT). Critically, this scholarship and career development program will create new opportunities for NJIT’s engineering and computer science undergraduate students. The agreement also addresses STEM education gaps for underrepresented students in Newark by aiming to expand a range of STEM outreach events, initiatives and college-prep programming for local elementary, middle school and high school students at NJIT. Additionally, the scholarship program potentially creates new co-op, internship, and job opportunities for NJIT students at Ørsted’s recently announced North American Digital Operation headquarters in Newark.

While Ocean Wind 1 has already laid the foundation for small, women-owned and minority-owned businesses to enter in the developing offshore wind industry with its $15 million Pro-NJ Grantor Trust, Ørsted says, Ocean Wind 2 expands upon the commitment to ensure a strong and inclusive industry. Through a second Pro-NJ Grantor Trust, Ocean Wind 2 will further allocate an additional $8 million for businesses, including veteran-owned businesses, who wish to enter the offshore wind industry.