A wind farm managed by the Dutch energy company Ørsted provides power to Rhode Island and Connecticut. The Revolution Wind project will power 350,000 homes with a capacity of 704 megawatts. Photos by Jenna Outcalt, grab photographer
The Revolution Wind project, a privately-owned wind farm that began construction in 2023 about 15 miles off the coast of Point Judith, Rhode Island, began making its first contribution to the Connecticut electric grid on March 13, according to Governor Lamont’s March 14 press release.
The project, which cost about $5 billion and consists of 65 wind turbines, is still only about 90% complete, according to WTNH.
Once complete, Revolution Wind will be able to power 350,000 homes and businesses, with a capacity of 704 megawatts, 304 of which will go towards Connecticut’s grids, according to the Revolution Wind website. This will make up about 5% of CT’s electricity demand, according to the press release.
Revolution Wind is owned by partners Danish energy company Ørsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables and is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year, according to CT Mirror.
Revolution Wind’s completion has been delayed, as it was one of five wind projects that was stalled by the Trump administration last year when they paused wind farm leases due to “unspecified national security risks identified by the Pentagon,” according to WTNH.
The first stop-work order came in August and was overturned by U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth; the second was in December and was again overturned by Lamberth in January, according to CT Mirror.
A wind farm managed by the Dutch energy company Ørsted provides power to Rhode Island and Connecticut. The Revolution Wind project will power 350,000 homes with a capacity of 704 megawatts. Photos by Jenna Outcalt, grab photographer
Other projects on the East Coast that have been paused included the Vineyard Wind project in Massachusetts, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind in New York, according to WTNH.
Gov. Ned Lamont championed the affordability offered by this project, saying it will be crucial for “lowering utility costs for families and businesses” in his press release.
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes said that it will save “hundreds of millions of dollars a year,” according to the press release.
An analysis conducted by DEEP determined that up to $500 million a year would be saved in energy costs after full deployment and implementation of the project. According to his March 13 press release, State Rep. Joe Courtney said, “the cost of this new locally generated power at nine cents per kWh is far less than the average of 30 cents per kWh in our region.”
According to the press release, Lamont said that the wind project will help in “diversifying [Connecticut’s] energy supply.”
Commissioner Dykes is quoted in the press release saying that this will help to keep the Connecticut power grid “insulated from geopolitical events” in the midst of oil price fluctuations due to the U.S.-Iran War
The release says that during the winter months, when winds are strongest, the wind energy output will be at its greatest, and Revolution Wind will keep electricity reliable and inexpensive.