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The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has approved the construction and operations plan for the Sunrise Wind project, a proposed 924 MW offshore wind facility that will deliver power to New York City upon completion, BOEM announced Friday.
This approval was the final decision needed for the project to begin offshore construction. Sunrise Wind is being developed by Ørsted and Eversource Energy, who expect it to be operational in 2026.
“Sunrise Wind is a centerpiece of New York’s clean energy vision, and with this final federal approval we can officially kick off the construction phase,” said David Hardy, Group Vice President and CEO of the Americas at Ørsted , in a statement. “BOEM’s approval is an important milestone not only for New York, but for the U.S. domestic energy sector as well.”
The final project will include up to 84 turbines with the potential to power more than 320,000 homes a year, BOEM said. The project is located south of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts and east of Montauk, New York.
In March, Sunrise Wind received a Record of Final Decision from BOEM, concluding the National Environmental Policy Act review process. At the same time, Ørsted and Eversource announced that they had reached a final investment decision on the project.
Ørsted had agreed in February to acquire Eversource’s 50% share of Sunrise Wind after the project received final approval and an OREC contract was signed with the state. Ørsted will become the sole owner of the project, but Eversource will remain contracted to lead the project’s ground construction.
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority finalized a new OREC for Sunrise Wind in early June, after the project was resubmitted in a 2023 offshore wind application after its previous contract became financially unviable. That contract contains “new provisions that provide additional benefits to the state,” NYSERDA said.
These new provisions include “new economic benefit commitments above what was originally contracted for, including $32 million committed to community-focused investments in New York’s underserved communities and $16.5 million to monitor the wildlife and fisheries,” according to NYSERDA.
