US Wind teams up with Sea Risk to boost its fishermen engagement efforts

US Wind, the developer of the MarWin offshore wind project off the coast of Maryland, has entered into a partnership with Sea Risk Solutions, a US-based business which will assist the company with engagement efforts with fishermen in Maryland and the greater Delmarva region.

The partnership, which will see Sea Risk’s Wolfgang Rain and Ron Larsen becoming US Wind’s fisheries liaisons, has been set up to ensure an ongoing dialogue with fishermen as development activities on the offshore wind project ramp up.

“We are excited to support US Wind in developing this critical offshore renewable energy project by acting as their fisheries liaisons”, said Wolfgang Rain of Sea Risk Solutions. “By working closely with local and regional fishermen, we can facilitate an exchange of information to help inform the wind farm development activities. We look forward to engaging with the area’s fishermen and establishing a foundation for the long-term, cooperative relationship US Wind desires with its offshore neighbors”.

This Sea Risk team will focus on the dissemination of information related to project milestones and survey activity, promotion of collaborative business opportunities, and coordination of regular opportunities to gather and respond to questions and concerns from the community.

“US Wind is committed to early, often, and continuous dialogue and information sharing with the fishermen in our region”, said Nancy Sopko, Director of External Affairs for US Wind. “Getting Sea Risk Solutions onboard, particularly Wolfgang and Ron with their vast experience and connections in the fishing community is a huge step forward in these engagement efforts”.

US Wind holds the rights for the Maryland Wind Energy Area under a Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) lease of approximately 80,000 hectares, located 16 to 48 kilometres off the state’s coast. In 2017, the company was awarded Offshore Renewable Energy Credits (ORECs) for the first phase of its MarWin project. In total, the lease area can support approximately 1,500 MW of offshore wind capacity.

The MarWin offshore wind farm could comprise up to 187 turbines. The project, which involves a total investment of USD 2.5 billion (approximately EUR 2 billion), is expected to create around 5,000 jobs in construction and manufacturing fields.

In December 2020, US Wind appointed Jeff Grybowski as the company’s new CEO. Grybowski is the former CEO of Deepwater Wind, the developer of Block Island Wind Farm, the first offshore wind farm in the U.S.