The former Brooklyn Navy Yard was the centerpiece of innovation at sea from its start in 1801 until its decommissioning in 1966, and it has not slept at the wheel since then. In the latest development, emerging tech incubator Newlab has partnered with leading renewable energy developer Ørsted to launch a whole new series of businesses from the Navy Yard, starting with offshore wind power – just in time to take advantage of a huge new offshore wind opportunity announced by the Biden administration for the New York Bight. Wait, New York what?

New York State Ready for Offshore Wind Close-up

Before we take a look at Newlab and Ørsted, let’s take a look at New York Bight.

At first glance, New York State does not appear to be a particularly successful candidate for national leadership in offshore wind. Aside from a foothold on the Great Lakes, New York would be almost entirely landlocked without Long Island, which juts out like a giant shard at the southern end of the state.

The north shore of Long Island sits across from Connecticut and forms what is known as the Long Island Sound, which refers to a relatively deep and narrow stretch of coastal ocean between two landmasses. In this case, “sound” is also short for no, will not leave any wind turbines here. The local fishing industry is among a number of factors opposing the idea of ​​adding wind turbines to the crowded waters of the Long Island Strait.

The situation is different on the south shore of Long Island, characteristic of New York Bight. A bay tends to be more open and shallower than a sound, forming a sort of wide, curved bend or wedge in a shoreline. Imagine Long Island as the forearm, with the upper arm formed by the somewhat notorious northern part of New Jersey’s coastline.

Where have you been, New Jersey?

The relatively shallow waters of the New York Bight combine with its proximity to the heavily populated New York – New Jersey subway to make it a prime location for offshore wind power, and this is where a story lies.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was quick to jump into the wind energy economy. In 2018, the oddly wind-friendly Trump administration even handed over the leadership of the new National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium to the Empire State, which is curious given that Trump’s story with wind turbines is far from friendly.

In New Jersey, it was a different story. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie took office in 2010 with an energy program fueled by Koch. The to-do list included slow-moving renewable energy standards enshrined in state law and an opportunity to host millions of dollars from the Department of Energy for an innovative new wind turbine.

Oh, there you are!

Well, that was then. Even when Christie was still in office, the Trump administration was pushing ahead with plans to adorn the Jersey coast with offshore wind turbines. Christie stepped down in 2018, a new governor took the reins, and now the Garden State is fighting for its place in the wind power spotlight.

In the latest development on this point, last year, current New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced plans to build a massive wind turbine monopile manufacturing plant at an existing New Jersey port on the Delaware River. , giving it easy access to the booming market for offshore wind turbines. all along the Atlantic coast, starting with the future 1,100 megawatt Ørsted Ocean Wind offshore wind farm located in the southernmost part of the state.

It seems that the era of slow walking is over. The groundbreaking ceremony for the new monopile factory took place in April, bringing the New Jersey wind port to life. Monopiles are long pole-type supports for offshore wind towers, and they are just the start. If all goes according to plan, the idea is to add the manufacture of blades, nacelles and wind turbine towers to the Wind Port mix.

Ørsted & Newlab & More Offshore Wind

If you’ve figured out this thing about Ørsted and the Ocean Wind offshore wind farm, you might be wondering how they got dibs on the first order of monopiles to roll out of the New Jersey wind port. It’s easy. Ørsted is a major investor in Wind Port, and this is only part of his interest in the nascent New Jersey wind industry.

Ørsted is already working to win the bid for Ocean Wind 2, which includes an investment of $ 11 million for a fleet of electric trucks at the Port of Newark. The company is also donating $ 2 million for green workforce training through the New Jersey WIND Institute which is also an R&D center, and speaking of R&D, that finally brings us to Newlab.

Earlier this week, Newlab and Ørsted announced the launch of Blue Energy Studio, described as “a collaborative initiative designed to drive innovation towards a future powered by renewable energy.”

“The Blue Energy Studio will engage entrepreneurs, engineers, inventors and partner companies, starting with Ørsted, to test and iterate innovative solutions to critical challenges in the renewable energy value chain,†the partners explain.

Newlab and Ørsted expect Blue Energy Studio to lay out an extensive renewable energy grid, but the initial focus will be squarely on offshore wind.

“During its initial phase, the Studio will focus on offshore wind innovation and recruit technology companies focused on streamlining the investigation and installation of new sites for offshore wind development; improve the efficiency of site operations and maintenance; and the optimization of energy distribution to energy networks, â€they explain, which sounds a bit like the raison d’être of the WIND Institute.

If there is a rivalry between New York and New Jersey, it looks like Ørsted is determined to fill the murky waters with a ring of offshore wind turbines featuring the latest in cost-saving technology and high efficiency, so stay tuned. listening to find out more.

The offshore wind hits New York Bay

If the name Newlab means anything to you, it’s because CleanTechnica has become a frequent visitor lately. Recent coverage includes mobile urban mini-farms, a test drive of new e-bikes and scooters, and a new energy harvesting device for parking lots from the startup Roadpower (Ford is another leading partner of Newlab, of elsewhere).

Meanwhile, opportunities to plant more monopiles off the coasts of New York and New Jersey have sprouted like red Solo cups on the lawn after a house party.

Earlier this week, the US Department of the Interior blew up the internet by offering the first sale of offshore wind leases in New York Bight. It’s kind of the story of a dog-bitten man, because offshore wind leases were a dime a dozen during Trump’s tenure (weird, right?). However, the proposed sale of Bight reaches man-bite level, as it is the first offshore lease sale offered under the Biden-Harris administration, and it falls under environmental, inclusive and pro-human justice policies. president workers.

“The New York Bight is a prime example of how regional cooperation, partnerships and stakeholder feedback can come together to identify areas of potential for offshore wind development,†said Amanda Lefton, who heads the ‘Of of the Ministry of the Interior. “Today’s announcement demonstrates that tackling climate change and creating unionized jobs can go hand in hand.

The proposed sale consists of eight leases in the New York Bight, which could generate a combined total of more than 7 gigawatts of offshore wind power.

This could be an underestimate. At the current rate of wind power innovation, developers at New York Bight could envision a whole new generation of high-efficiency wind turbines and related equipment when they’re ready to put steel in. water, in part thanks to Ørsted and Newlab. .

Follow me on twitter @TinaMCasey.

Image: Monopiles and other offshore wind turbine foundation systems courtesy of the US Department of Energy.