Equinor and bp are purchasing the Astoria Gas Turbine site in Queens, N.Y., from NRG to repurpose it as a converter station connecting offshore wind power to the New York grid.
The future converter station, named the Astoria Gateway for Renewable Energy (AGRE), will replace the decades-old plant with a new source of renewable power for New York. The AGRE station will receive 1.23 GW of energy generated by the Beacon Wind offshore wind project, located 60 miles off the eastern tip of Long Island, beginning in the late 2020s.
The NRG facility is planned to cease operations and will begin decommissioning in May. Pending permit approvals, Beacon Wind will begin site preparations in 2025, making AGRE one of the first fossil-to-renewable infrastructure repurposings in New York City.
“Beacon Wind will bring an important new source of renewable power to a neighborhood marked by its industrial past,” says Molly Morris, president of Equinor Wind US.
Equinor’s development of two lease areas in New York – Empire Wind and Beacon Wind – will provide New York with 3.3 GW of energy.
