| Project Detail |
Iberdrola, through Avangrid Renewables, is taking part in the development of a large-scale offshore wind farm off the coast of the state of Massachusetts, United States. Vineyard Wind I will have a capacity of 800 MW, which will be able to meet the energy needs of over 400,000 homes.
a company in which Iberdrola has a 50 % stake — through Avangrid RenewablesExternal link, opens in new window., an AVANGRID* subsidiary — and by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), is developing Vineyard Wind I offshore wind farm opposite the coast of Massachusetts. With 800 MW of installed capacity and an investment of 2.5 billion euros, it is the largest wind farm currently being developed in the United States, and one of the largest of Iberdrola Group in the world.
The park is 15 miles (some 24 km) south of Marthas Vineyard and 34 miles (some 55 km) south of the Cape Cod peninsula.
The complex, which is expected to go into service in 2023 and that construction began in November 2021, will generate wind power sufficient to meet demand from over 400,000 homes and businesses across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Once construction is completed and commercial operation begins, Iberdrola will take control of the projects operation phase and assume responsibility for controlling the operation and management of the facility, following the agreement reached with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners for this purpose.
Vineyard Wind I will prevent the emission of more than 1.6 million tons of carbon dioxide every year, the equivalent to withdrawing 325,000 vehicles from the roads, and, during the life of the project, a total of 3,700 million dollars will be saved in energy costs in the region of New England.
The wind farm will create 3,600 full-time equivalent jobs and, under the Project Labour Agreement (PLA), at least 500 of the jobs created during the construction phase of the project are guaranteed to be filled by local staff and includes high hiring targets for women and various groups facing racial discrimination in the US.
This new development, slated to be the first commercial scale offshore windfarm in the United States, will be Iberdrolas Groups first offshore wind energy project in the country, ratifying its position as a global leader in this area.
Evolution of the project
On 18 November 2021, construction began on Vineyard Wind 1, the first large offshore wind farm in the United States, which will be 25 times the size of the only existing facility of its kind in the country, located in Rhode Island.
The project had reached a $2.3 billion financing agreementExternal link, opens in new window. with nine global lending banks, the first financial close for a commercial scale offshore wind project in the US. The financing included a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) and an electricity interconnection programme, and allowed construction to begin, with the aim of starting to supply clean electricity to Massachusetts in 2023.
Vineyard Wind I has therefore secured all necessary permits, among them the federal approval from the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), to commission Vineyard Wind I.
BOEM had already issued the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the park, a comprehensive study to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of the proposed project and informs BOEMs Record of Decision.
After receiving final authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the company has now executed an agreement with ISO New England to connect its generation into the New England electric power grid at the NSTAR 115kV switch station in Barnstable, Massachussets.
Once the start of the federal environmental study has been approved, the company has signed long-term energy sale agreements, which are known as Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with Massachusetts electricity retailers. |
