Deepwater Wind’s 144MW Revolution Wind project will create approximately 700 direct regional construction jobs in and around the City of New Bedford, Massachusetts, the company announced.
The Revolution Wind project will use the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal for construction and staging operations, which, according to Deepwater Wind, will create the high number of jobs to complete the first 144MW of what could be a much larger project over time.
The company expects that the economic activity located in the city will lead to hundreds of additional indirect jobs, many of which will be located in New Bedford as part of the project’s use of the marine terminal and other facilities.
Jeffrey Grybowski , Deepwater Wind’s CEO, said: “This is just the start of the regional economic benefits generated from Deepwater Wind’s projects. Revolution Wind will occupy just 20 percent of our site. As we build future projects in the site, we will create many more jobs in the region.”
During its use of port facilities, the project will pay USD 5.5 million in annual fees to the state and USD 500,000 annually to the City of New Bedford.
“These funds will make it possible for the Port of New Bedford to provide essential additional port services, invest in and plan for the future growth of the port, and help maintain our leadership role in commercial fishing by successfully integrating an emerging industry on our waterfront,” said Port Director Edward Anthes-Washburn .
According to Deepwater Wind, upon approval by the Massachusetts utilities expected in January, Revolution Wind will generate between USD 200 to USD 250 million in direct and indirect regional economic activity.
Additionally, the ongoing operations and maintenance for the project will be located in New Bedford. The company is working with the city to identify suitable sites for the O&M facility and vessel dockage, which will create approximately another 60 direct and indirect annual jobs over the 25-year lifespan of the wind farm.
Deepwater Wind announced the project in July this year, and if approved, it will become the first offshore wind developer to commit to using the City of New Bedford as its base.
If all goes by plan, local construction work would begin in 2022, with the project in operations in 2023. Survey work is already underway at the company’s lease area.