Avangrid Renewables Closes Vineyard Wind JV Restructuring and Increases Offshore Wind Portfolio to 4.9 GW
- Avangrid Renewables’ portfolio of offshore wind pipeline in New England exceeds 2.4 GW of awarded offshore wind projects
- Company bolsters experienced offshore wind leadership team
BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Avangrid Renewables, a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), has completed the previously announced restructuring of its existing Vineyard Wind joint venture to become the largest offshore wind supplier in New England. In total, Avangrid Renewables now has a projected offshore wind pipeline of 4.9 GW on the East Coast of the United States – enough to power more than 2 million households.
“With our completed restructuring, we are now even better positioned to continue to lead the burgeoning offshore wind industry in the United States,” said Dennis V. Arriola, CEO of AVANGRID. “We’ve got the right team in place and the expertise to bring these projects to commercial operation, to develop and build new projects, and to help our country meet its clean offshore energy goal of 30 GW by 2030.”
“Today marks the next phase for the Avangrid Renewables Offshore team as we continue to bring financial capital, global experience and technical expertise in offshore wind to the U.S. market,” said Bill White, president and CEO of Avangrid Renewables Offshore. “We have built a strong team of industry-leading offshore wind professionals, with a balanced mix of U.S. and global experts, and plans to add as many as 100 additional professionals in the coming year.”
Following the closing of its restructuring agreement with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners on January 10, Avangrid Renewables now owns 100% of the Park City Wind (804 MW to Connecticut) and Commonwealth Wind (1232 MW to Massachusetts) offshore wind projects and retains a 50% share of the 800 MW Vineyard Wind 1 project serving Massachusetts, which is also the nation’s first commercial scale offshore wind farm. Avangrid Renewables is also the 100% owner of Kitty Hawk Offshore Wind (2500 MW) located off the coast of North Carolina and Virginia with the potential to deliver power to both states.
In addition, Avangrid Renewables has promoted two senior leaders responsible for implementing the company’s growing offshore wind project pipeline and securing its next generation of projects and growth. The appointments further strengthen the company’s world class offshore wind management team.
Sy Oytan has been appointed Senior Vice President for Offshore Project Management. Oytan is now responsible for the leadership and completion of Park City Wind and Commonwealth Wind. Oytan also continues in his role as Deputy CEO of Vineyard Wind 1 and will remain integral to the project’s successful construction. Oytan joined Avangrid Renewables in 2020 and has held significant leadership positions with Siemens Gamesa, the State of New Jersey, and Nord Renewable Energy Consulting. Oytan holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Middle East Technical University and a master’s in engineering from Clemson University.
Eric Thumma is promoted to Vice President for Offshore New Business. Thumma is responsible for the businesses’ commercial agreements, growth opportunities and strategies. Thumma joined Avangrid Renewables in 2007 serving as Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs before joining the offshore business in 2019 as Senior Director for New Business. Thumma served as a Director of the Pennsylvania Energy Office and Deputy Secretary for Pollution Prevention and Compliance Assistance at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Pittsburgh.
About Avangrid Renewables Offshore Wind Portfolio
Vineyard Wind 1: a 50/50 joint venture with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and the first commercial scale U.S. Offshore Wind Project. The project began onshore construction last year and when completed will deliver 800 MW to Massachusetts customers.
Park City Wind: an 804 MW project that will deliver clean energy to Connecticut customers while revitalizing Bridgeport’s waterfront as home to the project’s office and transition piece staging and operations and maintenance port.
Commonwealth Wind: a groundbreaking 1232 MW project that will deliver clean energy to Massachusetts customers. The project supports historic economic development investments in the Commonwealth, including a tier I cable manufacturing facility and the Commonwealth’s second offshore wind port in Salem, MA.
Kitty Hawk Offshore Wind: a 2,500 MW development project off the coast of North Carolina and Virginia. The project can deliver clean energy to both states and has received its notice of intent to proceed with permitting from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
About AVANGRID: AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $39 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, AVANGRID has two primary lines of business: Avangrid Networks and Avangrid Renewables. Avangrid Networks owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Avangrid Renewables owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. AVANGRID employs approximately 7,000 people and has been recognized by Forbes and Just Capital as one of the 2021 JUST 100 companies – a list of America’s best corporate citizens – and was ranked number one within the utility sector for its commitment to the environment and the communities it serves. The company supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2021 for the third consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this release may relate to our future business and financial performance and future events or developments involving us and our subsidiaries that are not purely historical and may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “can,” “expect(s),” “believe(s),” “anticipate(s),” “intend(s),” “plan(s),” “estimate(s),” “project(s),” “assume(s),” “guide(s),” “target(s),” “forecast(s),” “are (is) confident that” and “seek(s)” or the negative of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about our the impacts of the Vineyard Wind restructuring, the expected benefits of the Vineyard Wind restructuring, our offshore wind pipeline, the expected timetable for completing offshore wind projects, the ability to recruit and retain a highly qualified and diverse workforce in the competitive labor market, future opportunities, plans, objectives and intentions, outlooks or other future financial or business performance, strategies or expectations, results of operations or financial condition of the business and other statements about future events or performance. Such statements are based upon the current reasonable beliefs, expectations, and assumptions of our management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. Important factors are discussed and should be reviewed in our Form 10-K and other subsequent filings with the SEC. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Other risk factors are detailed from time to time in our reports filed with the SEC, and we encourage you to consult such disclosures.
Contacts
MEDIA:
Zsoka Mcdonald
zsoka.mcdonald@avangrid.com
203-997-6892
INVESTORS:
Patricia Cosgel
Patricia.cosgel@avangrid.com
203-499-2624
