A must-attend event, the EBC 5th Annual Connecticut Offshore Wind Program presents experts in the offshore wind energy industry responsible for advancing Connecticut’s offshore wind industry with sustainable and equitable growth in 2024.

In 2022, Governor Lamont signed two historic bills into law to fully decarbonize Connecticut’s electric sector and expand existing renewable energy programs. Through these actions, all electricity supplied to customers in Connecticut is required to come from zero-carbon sources by 2040. By 2030, the State has also pledged to reduce the level of greenhouse gas emissions to at least 45% below 2001 levels; by 2050, these emissions are required to be 80% below 2001 levels.

To help advance these zero-carbon electricity goals, a Connecticut Offshore Wind Strategic Roadmap was completed in October 2023. This Roadmap outlines the state’s commitments to offshore wind energy as well as its strategy for expansion. Connecticut’s focus on regional collaboration, state offshore wind policies supportive of federal policies and financial incentives for developers in the Inflation Reduction Act, and strategic port infrastructure investment has positioned the state as a key player in the offshore wind industry in the United States. Also in 2023, the State Pier Terminal in New London became the first active East Coast offshore wind hub and marshaling terminal with unobstructed access to the ocean, as staging and assembly operations began for the first of three Ørsted and Eversource projects commissioned by Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island. The U.S. offshore wind industry is larger than any one state, learn how Connecticut is committed to collaborating with partners at all levels: locally with underserved communities on workforce development, regionally with Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; nationally; and globally.

Sustainable and equitable growth of Connecticut’s offshore wind economy focuses on four strategic pillars: Infrastructure & Real Estate, Supply Chain, Workforce, and Research & Development. To implement these tactics, the state launched the Connecticut Wind Collaborative (CWC), a new public-private organization focused on advancing the offshore wind industry in Connecticut in 2024. In March 2024, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) received proposals from four project developers under its multistate Request for Proposals with Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

With so much going on both within Connecticut and regionally, the annual EBC Connecticut Offshore Wind Conference is required viewing for offshore wind professionals seeking to put all the puzzle pieces together. Speakers will report on progress of the multistate offshore wind procurement, port development and operations, grid improvements, environmental permitting, and collaborative strategies underway in 2024 to advance the Connecticut and U.S. offshore wind industry.

General Continuing Education Certificates are awarded by the EBC for this program (4.0 training contact hours). Certificates are automatically provided via email link for registered attendees at the conclusion of the program.