DONG Energy is teaming up with New England transmission builder Eversource Energy to jointly develop the Bay State Wind project, a proposed offshore wind farm to be located off the Massachusetts coast.
DONG Energy Wind Power U.S. Inc. and Eversource will seek to jointly develop, construct and operate the utility-scale offshore wind project in a 50-50 partnership. Bay State Wind will be situated roughly 15 to 25 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard.
DONG Energy will lead the development and construction of the project’s offshore generation and transmission assets, and Eversource will develop and construct the onshore transmission system.
“Offshore wind is a reliable, homegrown energy source that can be delivered at scale to Massachusetts residents and businesses,” says Thomas Brostrøm, general manager for DONG Energy Wind Power U.S. Inc. “New England’s water depths and wind speeds are similar to those in Europe and provide attractive conditions.”
In April 2015, DONG Energy secured newly assigned project development rights to the 300-square-mile ocean area. It was made available for lease by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in a competitive solicitation.
In August 2016, Massachusetts formally adopted a comprehensive energy bill that includes a first-of-its-kind mandate that state utilities purchase 1.6 GW of offshore wind power by 2027.
“We are encouraged by the dramatic progress that Europe is making in the offshore wind market,” says Lee Olivier, executive vice president of strategy and business development at Eversource Energy. “Wind technology is rapidly advancing, output is increasing and prices are dramatically dropping. Now is the time to bring that progress here to New England, and we are thrilled to be partnering with a developer who has such a successful track record.”
Eversource transmits and delivers electricity and natural gas to more than 3.6 million electric and natural gas customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
