Ørsted and Eversource to charter first Jones Act wind turbine installation vessel

Ørsted and Eversource have signed a deal to charter Dominion Energy’s newbuild Charybdis, the first Jones Act-compliant offshore wind turbine installation vessel in the US, for the construction of two offshore wind farms in the northeast.

The vessel, which is expected to be sea-ready by late 2023, will first be deployed out of New London harbour to support the construction of Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind, both under joint development by Ørsted and Eversource. Once complete, the two projects will generate more than 1.6 GW of renewable energy.

The charter’s terms will allow the vessel, subject to state regulatory approval, to support construction of Dominion Energy’s 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project off the coast of Virginia Beach, which is expected to be completed in 2026.

Dominion Energy is leading a consortium of naval engineering and fabrication firms to build the approximately $500m vessel.

The vessel is being constructed in Brownsville, Texas, at global marine shipbuilder firm Keppel AmFELS’s shipyard.