Second Offshore Wind Port in Massachusetts Breaks Ground

August 16, 2024, by Adrijana Buljan

Construction work on converting a former oil- and coal-fired power plant site in Salem, Massachusetts, into a terminal serving the offshore wind industry has started.

On 15 August, Crowley Wind Services, the company managing the redevelopment and the new terminal’s operator, held a groundbreaking ceremony at the site that will become the Salem Offshore Wind Terminal and Massachusetts’s second offshore wind port.

The terminal, expected to enter operation in 2026, is being built to support the construction of offshore wind farms in New England and future floating turbines in the Gulf of Maine, Crowley says.

The company also announced that it awarded Massachusetts-based joint venture DW White JF White to be the project’s general contractor. The contractor has executed a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) with the North Shore Building and Construction Trades and the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters (NASRCC).

Crowley purchased the property in 2022, when the company noted the terminal was a public-private partnership signed between Crowley and the city of Salem, with Avangrid serving as the port’s anchor tenant through its Commonwealth Wind and Park City Wind projects.

In February 2023, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), Crowley Wind Services and the City of Salem signed an agreement for the transfer of ownership, site improvements and ongoing operations at the new terminal. The transactions saw MassCEC purchasing more than 42 acres (169,968 square metres) on Salem Harbor and the transfer of a 5-acre parcel to the City of Salem, including the port’s existing deep-water berth.

Under the agreement, Crowley is responsible for redeveloping and operating the terminal. The company has signed a lease with MassCEC to use the site as an offshore wind marshalling port, with a focus on projects for Massachusetts. The City of Salem has also leased a berth and surrounding land for this purpose.

The work that will be carried out by Crowley Wind Services includes upgrading the site by adding infrastructure for heavy equipment, constructing a new berth, upgrading the City’s existing berth, and dredging the harbour channel.

The terminal is said to create about 150 jobs during construction and an additional 20-30 jobs needed to operate and maintain the facility during busier periods, in addition to at least eight long-term Crowley employees who will manage the terminal during operations.

When projects are underway, 60 to 150 jobs, from engineers to building trades, will also be available through the terminal’s tenants and their contractors.

The groundbreaking ceremony on 15 August was also joined by Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, and Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo.

“Coming on the heels of $389 million in federal funds for offshore wind transmission in Somerset, the expansion of the port in New Bedford, and now the groundbreaking in Salem, Massachusetts is well-positioned to support the growing offshore wind industry”, said Governor Maura Healey. “These investments in infrastructure are boosting the local economy, creating union jobs, and transforming the way we power our homes and businesses. Credit to Lieutenant Governor Driscoll for her vision, Mayor Pangallo for securing a strong Community Benefits Agreement, and to the many other stakeholders who are making the pivot to offshore wind”.

As reported on 7 August, the US Department of Energy, through the second round of its competitive Grid Innovation Program, granted USD 389 million (approximately EUR 356 million) for New England states’ proposal to invest in regional electric infrastructure, including transmission system upgrades to connect offshore wind energy to the New England grid.

Following the grant, the three US states that launched the country’s first multi-state offshore wind solicitation pushed back their bid selection deadline(s) by one month to allow time to consider the effects of the transmission plan.

Among the offshore wind project proposals submitted in the tri-state solicitation is also Avangrid’s shovel-ready 791 MW New England Wind 1 (formerly known as Park City Wind) and the 1,080 MW New England Wind 2 (Commonwealth Wind).

Massachusetts also received bids from SouthCoast Wind Energy and Vineyard Offshore.

Rhode Island and Connecticut received offshore wind proposals from four project developers: Avangrid Renewables, SouthCoast Wind Energy, Vineyard Offshore, and Ørsted.