Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has announced details of an agreement for Ørsted to lease a portion of the Portsmouth Marine Terminal to stage offshore wind materials and equipment. The agreement was ratified by a unanimous vote of the Virginia Port Authority Board of Commissioners
Ørsted could use the site for its work on the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project with Dominion Energy, as well as for staging materials and equipment for projects up and down the east coast of the US.
If fully executed, the lease will run through at least 2026, during which time Ørsted plans to install nearly 3.0 GW of offshore wind energy projects in the US.
“This is a big step toward making Virginia a leader in wind energy and offshore wind manufacturing,” said Governor Northam. “With the Port of Virginia at its helm, the Hampton Roads region has the trained workforce and the nautical know-how to become a vital hub for offshore wind development. We welcome Ørsted and look forward to the tremendous opportunities ahead of us.”
The agreement between the Port and Ørsted is for an initial lease of 1.7 acres at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal through 2026, with options to expand to an additional 40 acres. If fully executed, the agreement could be worth nearly US$13M in lease payments and result in site upgrades worth more than US$20M for cranes and improvements to a section of the terminal’s berth to ensure heavy load capacity. Those investments would prepare the site for activities such as pre-assembly, staging, and loading wind turbines for other Ørsted projects.
“This announcement demonstrates the potential we see in Virginia as a central player in the burgeoning US offshore wind industry,” said Ørsted president and chief executive North America Thomas Brostrøm. “Much activity will be taking place in Virginia and beyond in the coming months and years, and Portsmouth Marine Terminal is well-situated to meet our needs both now and in the future.”
Portsmouth Marine Terminal is one of the Port of Virginia’s two multi-use terminals in the Norfolk Harbour. Covering 287 acres, the facility is located on deep water, has on-dock rail access, and offers open space for storage and staging.
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