July 2, 2024 — Construction of wind projects off the coast of the Vineyard is starting to ramp up.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved construction and operations plans for two major offshore wind projects recently: Ørsted’s Sunrise Wind received permission in late June, with Avangrid’s New England Wind receiving approvals this week.
Eighty-four turbines are planned for Sunrise Wind, with a capacity of producing 924 megawatts. The project could power more than 320,000 homes, according to the federal energy agency. It’s located around 18 miles southwest of Martha’s Vineyard, and will be providing power to New York.
According to Ørsted, offshore wind construction will “ramp up” later this year, and Sunrise Wind is expected to be fully operational by 2026.
Meanwhile, the federal approval for New England Wind — consisting of two projects called New England Wind 1 and New England Wind 2 — is expected to have a total power capacity of 2,600 megawatts of energy, and could power more than 900,000 homes annually, according to the federal energy agency.