Equinor announced that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved the Large Generator Interconnection Agreement (LGIA) for the Empire Wind 1 project. This agreement involves Equinor, the New York ISO (NYISO), and Consolidated Edison Company of New York.

Notably, this marks the first FERC approval for any offshore wind project to connect directly to New York City's transmission system. With FERC's approval, Empire Wind 1 will be able to connect to the New York City electrical grid via the Sunset Park Onshore Substation at South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT), delivering 810 megawatts of reliable renewable power to Con Edison's Gowanus substation.

“The execution of the LGIA is a key milestone for Empire Wind and for New York City,” said Teddy Muhlfelder, vice president of Equinor Renewables Americas. “This federal approval marks the culmination of a years-long process under NYISO and is another important step in allowing Equinor to advance a project that will connect offshore renewable power to Brooklyn and into hundreds of thousands of New York homes.” 

“Con Edison is building the grid of the future to provide our customers with reliable, renewable, clean energy,” said Walter Alvarado, vice president, Con Edison System and Transmission Operation. “We are pleased to continue our work with the team from Empire Wind 1 to connect this project to our grid and bring the first offshore wind energy to our customers in New York City.”   

This announcement is the latest in a series of achievements for Empire Wind 1, which was selected as a provisional winner in New York’s fourth offshore wind solicitation (NY4) on February 29. The project also received approval of its federal Construction and Operations Plan from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management last month, and the New York Public Service Commission issued the project’s Article VII Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need in December 2023.  

Empire Wind aims to establish New York as a key hub for the offshore wind industry. This involves transforming the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal into a facility for assembling offshore wind industry components and serving as a base for operations and maintenance (O&M).