America’s new offshore wind industry is taking off, and what we see now is just the tip of a vast clean energy – and business supply chain – opportunity. A new white paper confirms this, prepared by the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind (SIOW) with analysis from the Renewables Consulting Group. The study projects the offshore renewable energy source will generate nearly 20 gigawatts (GW) of cost-competitive power in seven Atlantic Coast states by 2030, and nearly $70 billion in capital expenditure (CAPEX) revenue opportunity for businesses in the U.S. offshore wind supply chain.
The white paper is a first-of-its-kind analysis that offers a road map to states and a menu to suppliers for building gigawatts of new U.S. offshore wind over the next decade. It does so by quantifying the timing and pace of $68.2 billion in supply chain contracting prospects for installing the 18.6 GW of offshore wind power procurements forecasted on the Atlantic Seaboard by 2030.
The key components needed for this projected build-out include:
- Over 1,700 offshore wind turbines and towers: $29.6 billion
- Over 1,750 offshore wind turbine and substation foundations: $16.2 billion
- Over 5,000 miles of power export, upland and array cables: $10.3 billion
- Over 60 onshore and offshore substations:$ 8 billion
- Marine support, insurance and project management activities: $ 3 billion
The study details rising commitments by states and power procurements forecast through 2030:
- New York, 7.7 GW (9 GW by 2035)
- New Jersey, 3.5 GW
- Massachusetts, 3.2 GW
- Connecticut, 2 GW
- Maryland, 1.2 GW
- Rhode Island, 1 GW
- Virginia, 12 megawatts.
These commitments total more than 18 GW of U.S. offshore wind power.
As states and industry suppliers lead the way, they’re eager for more clarity about the path ahead. SIOW’s analysis illuminates the market’s supply chain needs, timing and pace, and $70 billion CAPEX for businesses to translate gigawatts into growth opportunities and build this extraordinary enterprise.
Randall Luthi, President, National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), puts it in perspective: “This report provides a roadmap for companies that will create new jobs and generate competition, which means better prices for producers and better electricity rates for consumers in the future. NOIA has long advocated for all-of-the-above energy and new offshore energy growth in America. Our members look forward to participating in the massive opportunity presented by offshore wind. The report identifies significant opportunities for the supply chain that will build, supply and support the U.S. offshore wind sector. We’re watching a new industry grow right here off our shores and NOIA’s members are enthusiastic to be a part of this energy future.”
“Gulf Island Fabrication constructed the foundations for the five turbines at Block Island, RI – we know the power and value of offshore wind,” said Bill Blanchard, Senior Vice President, Business Development, at the Texas-based firm. “This new study shows there’s a lot more where that came from. Five foundations down, 1,750 more to go. That’s the kind of business opportunity the offshore energy industry can get excited about.”
“In quantifying the industrialization of offshore wind in the U.S., this white paper illustrates just how much potential there is in the sector, top to bottom,” said Jason Folsom, Boston-based U.S. National Sales Director for MHI Vestas Offshore Wind. “It presents an exceptionally compelling case on the emergence of offshore wind as an engine for U.S. energy transition.” The firm plans to install 84 of its new 9.5 megawatts (MW) turbines in Massachusetts’ 800 MW Vineyard Wind project, which will be America’s first utility-scale offshore wind farm.
Click here to read the full white paper: Supply Chain Contracting Forecast for U.S. Offshore Wind Power.
