Climate Jobs NY Update: Wind Energy Auction for 480k Acres on the New York Bight

ICYMI: On January 12, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, joined by NY Governor Kathy Hochul, NJ Governor Phil Murphy, and AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler announced that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will hold a wind energy auction on Feb. 23, 2022, for more than 480,000 acres in the New York Bight. The auction will allow offshore wind developers to bid on six lease areas – the most areas ever offered in a single auction – as described in BOEM’s Final Sale Notice. Leases offered in this sale could result in 5.6 to 7 gigawatts of offshore wind energy, enough to power nearly 2 million homes.

Crucially, the announcement includes stipulations for entering into Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) in constructing the wind projects, incentives for a local supply chain, and enhanced engagement with communities. CJNY has worked continuously with our local federal representatives, like Rep. Kathleen Rice, to see this auction come to fruition. As our Regional Director Mariah Dignan highlighted, these stipulations and incentives "will propel working families forward for generations to come while taking an important step forward for the offshore wind industry.