Orsted to Acquire Remaining Stake in New York Wind Farm

By Bloomberg

Jan 24, 2024

image is BloomburgMedia_S7SAYZDWRGG000_25-01-2024_08-00-12_638417376000000000.jpg

Beachfront homes near a lift boat, center, in Wainscott, New York, US, on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022. The vessel's drill will be used in the construction of the South Fork Wind farm that will bore tunnels to bring electricity from the offshore wind farm that should start generating power in late 2023.

(Bloomberg) -- Orsted A/S agreed to buy out its joint venture partner in a New York offshore wind farm after abandoning two New Jersey projects last year and taking $4 billion in impairment charges.

Orsted didn’t provide a price for the 50% stake in the 924-megawatt Sunrise Wind project it agreed to acquire from Eversource Energy, according to a statement Wednesday. The agreement is contingent on the project winning a contract to deliver power in a New York auction.

Eversource also is seeking to sell its 50% stake in two other wind farm projects it’s developing with Orsted: Revolution, south of Rhode Island, and South Fork, east of Long Island.

Still, the Danish company said it remains committed to the region.

“The northeast is an increasing priority for Orsted,” David Hardy, the company’s chief executive officer for the Americas, said in the statement. “We’re building a future offshore wind hub that is strategic for Sunrise Wind.”

Offshore wind developers in the US are facing challenges from rising costs. Orsted recorded $4 billion in impairment charges from canceling two projects in New Jersey last year, while Eversource said this month it’s taking an impairment charge of as much as $1.6 billion for its three projects.

(Updates with context in first paragraph, adds details starting with fourth paragraph.)

By Will Wade