The offshore wind farms to be built south and east of Long Island will need everything from cranes, tools and trailers for onshore construction and food for the technicians who will live on seagoing vessels, to security personnel and landscapers for operations centers.
Equinor, a Norwegian wind farm developer, and its partner BP PLC are constructing three of the five parks permitted by New York State. Together, the three farms will generate electricity for 2 million homes by 2026-28.
Equinor officials said given the farms’ proximity to the island, it made sense for the company to purchase goods and services locally whenever possible. Equinor also has more than $3.4 billion to spend on state companies under contracts signed with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
“We now need to find and obtain all the different parts of the [offshore wind-farm] system,” said Harriet Green, Operations Manager at Equinor.
WHAT TO KNOW
- The offshore wind Farms to be built off Long Island require a wide range of goods and services, some of which can be supplied locally.
- company on long Iceland should sign up for a government supplier database to show its interest in working with wind farm developers, executives said at an event organized by Equinor, which is building three wind farms.
- The operation and Maintaining the farms for more than 30 years could offer local subcontractors more opportunities than the construction phase, executives said.
“Anything you can imagine we need. For example, everyone who comes to work has to eat something. They may need all-round services that enable them to work, such as childcare and transportation [to and from work],” She said.
Green, along with executives from Equinor’s largest contractors, spoke to local business owners about subcontracting opportunities on Friday. About 200 people attended the Equinor Offshore Wind Supply Chain Expo at Farmingdale State College.
While construction of the offshore wind farms is now attracting attention, Green says Equinor will need spare parts and other supplies to service the farms for decades.
“Anything that fails, we have to replace or repair… [and] we will look at how we can do that on the ground,” she said.
Thomas Allain, director of offshore service sales at wind turbine manufacturer Vestas, agreed, saying: “There is a lot of excitement about the build. But these turbines will be here for 30 years or more. So there will be maintenance [of the turbines] every day for the next 35 to 40 years.”
Business owners wishing to apply for jobs were instructed to register with a government supplier database: https://bit.ly/3Llc1hP.
“This database is the first place we look,” said Okera Bullen, a procurement and supply chain executive at Nexans, a manufacturer of electrical transmission cables. Registration in the database “shows us that you are interested in working in the offshore wind space,” he said.
The Equinor projects are Empire Wind I and Empire Wind II to be built south of Long Beach and Beacon Wind I to be built 60 miles east of Montauk Point and 20 miles south of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
The latter’s transmission cable will reach land in Astoria, Queens. Miller Marine Services of Port Jefferson helped map the cable’s route through Long Island Sound last fall. The company provided the ship that scientists and engineers used for the work.
“Equinor will help us thrive, particularly with their commitment to leveraging local businesses,” Miller Marine President Jimmy Miller told the Farmingdale State crowd. “These were not just words put on paper [in contracts with New York State]. They kept their promise,” he said, citing his participation in Beacon Wind I.
Miller’s experience with Equinor has been encouraging for other business owners.
The offshore wind farms “are the biggest thing we’ve seen on Long Island in years in terms of scale, money and jobs,” said Paul Sailon, owner of Sailon Auto Electric Inc., a supplier of remanufactured parts for diesel Engines. “I came here today to let you know that I exist and that I can help you.”
Separately, Orsted, another wind farm developer, and its partner Eversource will host an event for suppliers on April 25 at Suffolk County Community College’s Brentwood campus. To register, go to https://bit.ly/3JgWVHB.
Orsted has received approval for two wind farms: South Fork Wind and Sunrise Wind, both to be built 30 miles off Montauk. South Fork is expected to be operational later this year.
