All eyes on record US Offshore Wind lease auction this week

Source: F.Schmidt/Shutterstock

Countdown to the first offshore wind lease sale to be organised under the Biden-Harris administration. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will hold an offshore wind energy auction on 23 February for more than 480,000 acres in the New York Bight.

The event will allow offshore wind developers to bid on six lease areas – the most areas ever offered in a single auction in the United States of America – and add from 5.6GW to 7GW of capacity to the country's energy mix. That could be enough to power nearly 2 million homes.

Located in federal waters offshore New York and New Jersey, New York Bight area is part of the government's strategy in the clean energy sector, which set a target of 30GW of installed offshore wind capacity by 2030 at the beginning of last year.

It is an opportunity to fight climate change and create new jobs, according to the Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

The Biden-Harris administration has made tackling the climate crisis a centerpiece of our agenda, and offshore wind opportunities like the New York Bight present a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fight climate change and create good-paying, union jobs in the United States. We are at an inflection point for domestic offshore wind energy development. We must seize this moment – and we must do it together.

Figure 2: Clean Energy Jobs in the USA. Source: American Clean Power Association.

Shared vision delivering benefits and jobs in the region

The last government auction for wind leases was held in 2018. With the current auction, the country aims to put the US as a major global offshore wind market player. A recent report indicates that the United States’ growing offshore wind industry presents a $109 billion opportunity in revenue to businesses in the supply chain over the next decade.

New York and New Jersey established the nation’s largest regional offshore wind target of installing over 16GW of offshore wind by 2035.

The main leaders in the region (New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and Liz Shuler, President of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations) together with the Secretary of the Interior outlined a shared vision for developing a robust offshore wind domestic supply chain that will deliver benefits to residents of New York and New Jersey.

Liz Burdock, president and CEO of the Network, said:

These six new lease areas will draw in new investors and developers to the U.S. market and foster the competition that will catalyze major supply chain development regionally and nationally.

How can Airswift help you?

The industry is changing, and we understand the challenges facing the sector. After establishing as the best staffing agency in Houston, we have expanded our American footprint and supported strategic clients in new industries and locations from our offices in Houston, Denver, Midland and Anchorage.

Airswift is committed to supporting renewable energy projects connecting international talent to the biggest wind energy projects. With over 60 offices worldwide, 1,000 employees, and 9,000 contractors, we have successfully placed both permanent and contract personnel across a wide range of offshore wind energy disciplines.

This includes the areas of cable engineering, offshore installation, fabrication and inspection, commissioning and O&M. If you are looking for talent for wind farms and clean energy projects, contact us.

This week’s US offshore wind lease auction marks another milestone for the US Offshore Wind Industry, and another step toward reaching the set target of 30GW of installed offshore wind capacity, by 2030. I’m excited to support this growing industry by building a sustainable workforce for the future.

Jennifer Moore, Division Manager – Power