The country’s first utility-scale offshore wind farm is now operating off the coast of New York, with the completion last month of the South Fork Wind project, a joint venture between Orsted Group and Eversource Energy, both based in Boston.

“From the first steel in the water to the final turbine, our hardworking offshore wind construction team has put South Fork Wind on the path to making American energy history,” said David Hardy Orsted Group group executive vice president and CEO for the Americas in a March 2024 press release issued by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Joe Nolan, Eversource’s chairman, president and CEO, said the project was a “true regional effort” and couldn’t have been realized without the support and investment in the Port of Providence in Rhode Island and the New London State Pier in Connecticut.

“Thanks to the local union workers and contractors who helped us build South Fork Wind’s transmission system and onshore substation, clean energy is flowing to the Long Island grid,” Nolan said.

All 12 of South Fork Wind’s turbines are installed, and the wind farm is delivering clean power to the local Long Island electric grid, with commissioning in its final stage. South Fork Wind is located 35 miles east of Montauk Point, N.Y., and an underground transmission line connects the offshore substation to the local power grid in East Hampton, N.Y.

At full capacity, the approximately 130-megawatt (MW) wind farm will generate enough renewable energy to power roughly 70,000 homes. The clean energy will eliminate up to 6 million tons of carbon emissions over the life of the project—the equivalent of taking 60,000 cars off the road for the next 20 years, according to the press release.

First approved by the Long Island Power Authority Board of Trustees in 2017, South Fork Wind began construction in February 2022, beginning with the onshore export cable system that links the project to the Long Island electric grid. The wind farm reached its “steel in the water” milestone in June 2023 with the installation of the project’s first monopile foundation, and its final turbine was installed in February.

South Fork Wind’s successful completion supports progress toward New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act requirements to achieve 70% renewable energy by 2030 and install 9 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2035, according to the press release. Two additional offshore wind project awards were announced in February, a planned 810-MW project, Empire Wind 1, developed by Equinor, Houston; and Sunrise Wind, a planned 924-MW project developed by Orsted and Eversource.

“When I broke ground on the South Fork project, I made a promise to build a cleaner, greener future for all New Yorkers,” Hochul said. “I’m keeping to that promise and South Fork Wind is now delivering clean energy to tens of thousands of homes and businesses on Long Island. With more projects in the pipeline, this is just the beginning of New York’s offshore wind future and I look forward to continued partnership with the Biden administration and local leaders to build a clean and resilient energy grid.”

South Fork Wind’s turbines were staged and assembled by local union workers at State Pier in New London, Conn. The project’s advanced foundation components were completed by local union workers at Orsted and Eversource’s fabrication hub at the Port of Providence. Its crew vessels and crew change helicopter is based out of Quonset Point, R.I.

South Fork Wind includes the first U.S.-built offshore wind substation, built by more than 350 workers across three states, with New York union workers supporting its installation offshore.

Long Island-based contractor Haugland Energy Group LLC, Melville, N.Y., installed the underground duct bank system for South Fork Wind’s onshore transmission line and led the construction of the project’s onshore interconnection facility. LS Cable & Systems USA, Peachtree, Ga., installed and jointed the onshore cables with support from Long Island electrical contractor, Elecnor Hawkeye, Hauppauge, N.Y.

The onshore cable scope of work alone created more than 100 union jobs for Long Island skilled trades workers. Roman Stone Construction Co., also on Long Island, manufactured concrete mattresses to protect the undersea cables, and Ljungstrom, Wellsville, N.Y., in partnership with Riggs Distler & Co. Inc., Cherry Hill, N.J., provided specialized structural steelwork.

“We are proud of the accomplishments of our skilled tradesmen and tradeswomen who played a critical role in getting this project across the finish line and getting wind energy delivered to thousands of homes on Long Island,” Gary LaBarbera, president of the New York State Building Trades Council, said in the press release.