Eversource awarded $89 million grant for US east coast offshore wind transmission hub

Eversource awarded $89 million grant for US east coast offshore wind transmission hub | Windpower Monthly

The Connecticut-based utility secured the funds through the second round of the US Department of Energy’s "power up New England" programme..

The hub project will consist of a new 345kV switching station in Montville, Connecticut, which Eversource said will establish interconnections for developers to deliver 2.4GW of offshore wind energy via high-voltage transmission lines to the hub.

The lines will use existing utility property and rights of way to minimise environmental impacts and disruptions to local communities while reducing costs, the company said.

“The US Department of Energy recognised the significance of the Power Up New England portfolio – including our Huntsbrook project – and awarded a transformational investment in clean energy transmission and storage infrastructure that will improve grid reliability, accelerate renewable energy integration, and reduce energy burdens across New England,” said Eversource’s president of transmission and offshore wind projects, Bill Quinlan.

Eversource led the transmission construction for the 132MW South Fork Wind project off Long Island, New York, the US’s first operational commercial-scale offshore wind project.

The company is also currently leading the transmission construction for the 704MW Revolution Wind project, which will provide power to Connecticut and Rhode Island, as well as the 924MW Sunrise Wind off New York.

Eversource expects to develop and submit requests for the necessary permits for the Huntsbrook offshore wind hub starting in late 2024 – the review processes could last through 2027. Then, the company anticipates construction to start in 2028 and continue through 2031. The utility had co-owned South Fork, Revolution and Sunrise, but sold its stakes earlier this year after taking a Q4 2023 impairment of $1.77 billion on the wind farms.