Turbine blades for the first US utility-scale offshore wind farm have arrived

Wind turbine blades and nacelles have arrived for South Fork Wind, the first utility-scale offshore wind farm in US federal waters.

South Fork’s wind turbine components have landed at the port of New London, Connecticut, and installation is expected to start this summer.

Danish wind giant Ørsted, which is jointly developing South Fork with energy provider Eversource, announced yesterday that the first wind turbine blades arrived on United Heavy Lift’s UHL Fierce yesterday. The cargo vessel sailed out of Aalborg, Denmark, on August 4.

Spotted in New London: blades arriving for @SouthForkWind turbines! Each of these blades is over three hundred feet long and once installed later this year, one rotation of the blades can power a house for a day. pic.twitter.com/RFMiKzzQ1I

— Ørsted U.S. (@OrstedUS)

The 132-megawatt (MW), 12-turbine South Fork Wind will produce enough clean energy to power 70,000 homes in New York. It’s located about 35 miles east of Montauk Point, and it will deliver clean energy directly to the electric grid in East Hampton via a single transmission line installed in March. The energy produced will be sold to the Long Island Power Authority under the terms of a 20-year agreement.

South Fork Wind’s first offshore wind turbine foundation was installed at the end of June, and its first US-built offshore substation was completed at the end of July. Hundreds of US workers and three ports in the Northeast will support its construction through late fall. It’s expected to come online on schedule at the end of 2023.

South Fork Wind is one of five offshore wind projects New York State has in active development – the largest portfolio in the US. This current portfolio totals more than 4,300 MW and will power more than 2.4 million New York homes. It’s expected to bring a combined economic impact of $12.1 billion to the state.

Vineyard Wind in Massachusetts has also been vying for the title of “first” utility-scale offshore wind farm in the US, but it’s expected to come online next year.

Photo: South Fork Wind

To limit power outages and make your home more resilient, consider going solar with a battery storage system. In order to find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and you share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –ad*