Orsted and partner Eversource have signed a contract with Dominion Energy to charter what will be the first US-flagged offshore wind turbine installation vessel.
The Charybdis vessel will be deployed for the construction of Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind, which together have a combined capacity of 1.6GW and are located off the US north-east coast.
Charybdis, which is expected to be sea ready by late 2023, will first be deployed out of New London Harbor to support the construction of these projects.
The charter’s terms will allow the vessel, subject to state regulatory approval, to support construction of Dominion Energy’s 2.6GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project off the coast of Virginia Beach, which is expected, consistent with prior guidance, to be completed in 2026.
Dominion Energy is leading a consortium of naval engineering and fabrication outfits to build Charybdis, which will support thousands of American jobs, assist in the development of a new domestic supply chain for the growing North American offshore wind industry and be fully utilised in support of the installation of offshore wind generation off the US east coast.
The approximately $500m vessel will operate as part of Dominion Energy’s contracted assets segment.
The vessel is being constructed in Brownsville, Texas, at Keppel AmFELS’s shipyard.
At peak construction, 1000 US workers will be employed on this project.
Once complete, the vessel will be homeported in Hampton Roads, in Virginia.
The vessel’s hull and infrastructure will be fabricated with more than 14,000 tonnes of domestic steel, with nearly 10,000 tonnes sourced from Alabama, West Virginia and North Carolina suppliers.
The vessel is designed to handle next generation turbine sizes of 12MW upwards and will also be capable of the installation of foundations for turbines.
For use on Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind, the vessel will work from State Pier in New London, Connecticut.
Dominion Energy CEO Bob Blue said: “Offshore wind is critical to America’s clean-energy future and the Charybdis plays a vital role in reaching the Biden Administration’s ambitious goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind production by 2030.
“We look forward to working with Orsted and Eversource on the construction of Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind to continue to grow the offshore wind industry in the US.”
“This new, state-of-the-art American-made wind turbine installation vessel is a major milestone for the offshore wind industry at both the local and national level,” said Joe Nolan, president and CEO of Eversource Energy.
Orsted Offshore North America CEO David Hardy added: “This investment will enable us to unlock the economic benefits of offshore wind, not just for the Northeast, but for the Southern states as well.
“We’re proud to partner with Dominion Energy and Eversource on this historic milestone.”
Orsted and Eversource have also committed nearly $100m to a public-private partnership with the State of Connecticut and Connecticut Port Authority to revitalise the currently underutilised port facility at the State Pier in New London.
Approximately 460 construction jobs will be created for the redevelopment of State Pier along with another 100 permanent positions.
In addition, the City of New London and Orsted-Eversource executed a 10-year host community agreement that brings a guaranteed $5.25m in new revenue to the city.
US Senator Richard Blumenthal (Democrat, Connecticut) said: “American-built equipment to spur renewable energy for American consumers is a true win-win.
“Connecticut looks forward to Charybdis’ arrival at a redeveloped State Pier and the jobs it will support as Orsted and Eversource bring their projects to life.”