Equinor Wind US has deployed specialized buoy that’s designed to gather information, an important step in the development of its offshore wind lease site in the “New York Bight.” This area is expected to provide wind energy to the New York and New Jersey regions and help achieve the renewable energy goals recently set forth by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Equinor is currently developing projects in its offshore lease areas for the Empire Wind project in New York and Boardwalk Wind in New Jersey. A one-minute video of the buoy can be viewed here.
The Floating LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) device will measure wind speed, wind direction, wave conditions, and several other marine characteristics that help inform critical decisions in regard to the resource potential and eventual development of the wind farm. It will be deployed to record this information for two years.
“The FLiDAR itself is an example of renewable energy innovation,” Christer af Geijerstam, President, Equinor Wind US, said. “The floating system, using solar panels, wind turbines and large batteries in its hull, can operate autonomously throughout a full winter season offshore New York. Access to good quality wind recordings like those provided by the FLiDAR system is essential to the development of any wind energy project today.”
Equinor Wind US won the federal lease auction of 80,000 acres south of New York and east of New Jersey in 2016. The company is currently developing projects in the lease area for the offshore-wind markets in New York and New Jersey, with the projects named Empire Wind in New York and Boardwalk Wind in New Jersey.
In December 2018, Equinor submitted a winning bid of $135 million for a lease area offshore Massachusetts in an auction held by the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. The new lease, located south of Massachusetts and east of New York, gives Equinor a strong strategic position in the region.
The company now holds leases within reach of some of the most important markets for offshore wind in the U.S., with the potential to provide over two million homes with clean, renewable power.
“The deployment of this specialized buoy marks another step forward in the multi-year process of bringing a reliable source of renewable energy to the New York and New Jersey area,” Christer af Geijerstam, President, Equinor Wind US, said. “Offshore wind power today is made possible by a host of innovative technologies, from larger and more efficient turbines to sophisticated LiDAR systems like this that enable us to gauge invaluable information about the characteristics of this offshore lease area.”
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