Late last month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) announced a 15-year, $191 million plan to make New York City a leader in the offshore wind industry. 

Called the Offshore Wind Vision (OSW) plan, it ensures the city meets its climate goals of 100-percent clean electricity by 2040 and carbon neutrality by 2050. The investment aims to create over 13,000 jobs and generate $1.3 billion in average annual investment; ensure 40% of job and investment benefits are directed toward women, minorities, and environmental justice communities; and reduce 34.5 million tons of CO2, which is the equivalent of removing nearly 500,000 cars from roads for 15 years, as noted in New York City’s press release. 

The OSW plan is focused on three core areas: sites and infrastructure, ensuring the development of “best-in-class” infrastructure that will support the construction and operation of offshore wind farms; business and workforce, preparing local workers and businesses, specifically those from disadvantaged neighborhoods, to seize upon the opportunities created by the infrastructure investments; and research innovation, promoting research and innovation in offshore wind to ensure that new technologies and approaches are made in New York City. 

Furthermore, the plan is set to support offshore wind projects across the east coast and ultimately throughout the world.  

Looking to attract additional federal, state, and private investments for the OSW plan, the NYCEDC will establish an Offshore Wind Industry Advisory Council made up of community, business, and nonprofit leaders.

“New York City is stepping up to confront the climate crisis with bold action,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “Investing in our offshore wind industry isn’t only a win for our planet, it also means thousands of new jobs and affordable, clean power for New Yorkers. This plan will have a dramatic impact on our fight against climate change and will help set us on the path towards a clean energy future.”

The NYCEDC has also announced that it and its partners have collaborated to activate the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT) in Sunset Park, Brooklyn into an OSW port. It will be operated by Equinor, a global developer of offshore wind power, who is behind the Empire Wind Project, a plan to create an offshore wind farm across an 80,000-acre stretch of water 20 miles south of Long Island. Adding to the OSW plan’s equity focus, the Empire Wind Project plans to set up a $5 million fund to ensure that low-income populations, people of color, and New Yorkers from environmental justice communities equally share in the industry’s benefits. 

In more recent news, last Friday, backers of a proposed 122-turbine offshore wind farm, that would be located 30 miles east of Montauk Point on Long Island, announced an $86 million contract to train workers and build the project. Development partners Orsted and Eversource say Sunrise Wind farm will power 600,000 homes and create over 200 jobs.