Atlantic City, April 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- North America’s premier offshore wind energy conference came to a successful close yesterday after three days of programming that featured an international cohort of government officials and industry leaders. The ninth annual International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum (IPF), hosted by the Business Network for Offshore Wind in Atlantic City, New Jersey, brought together nearly 3,000 attendees representing nearly 800 businesses from 25 countries.
The 2022 IPF kicked off with a tour of New Jersey’s offshore wind ports and a New Jersey + New York Supplier Day. The packed three-day conference included working group meetings, networking events, an exhibit hall, and presentations from Governors Phil Murphy and Roy Cooper, and industry-leading CEOs, including Ørsted CEO David Hardy, Atlantic Shores Commercial and Finance Director Joris Veldhoven, Vestas North America President Laura Beane, and more.
This year’s special guests were United States Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm and European Union Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson, who held a U.S.-EU High-Level Business Forum on Offshore Wind Power on Wednesday and later participated in a roundtable with small businesses in the offshore wind sector to hear firsthand accounts of the challenges they face. Other featured speakers included a strong contingent of domestic policymakers, including Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Richard Glick and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Amanda Lefton.
“The rapid growth of the offshore wind industry is a testament to the innovation, creativity, and hard work of so many of the businesses and policymakers that we welcomed to IPF. This was our most well-attended conference, with participation that has increased nearly tenfold since our first IPF in 2014,” said Business Network for Offshore Wind President and CEO Liz Burdock. “The growth of this conference is indicative of the rapid growth of our industry and the commitment our attendees have to seizing opportunities like this one to forge the connections necessary to build out the offshore wind supply chain domestically and abroad.”
The IPF exhibition floor offered a 360-degree look into the offshore wind industry, with more than 300 exhibitors from 25 countries gathered to share developments and products, discuss market insights, and engage potential business partners. Attendees were the first to learn about the Biden administration’s plans to move ahead with offshore wind development along the Oregon Coast and in the Central Atlantic when BOEM Director Lefton announced the launch of a process to delineate future leasing areas.
“From development, to leasing, to regulation, to labor, to diversity and inclusion, every aspect of our offshore wind development pipeline was well-represented at IPF, providing a tremendous opportunity for collaboration,” added Burdock. “The partnerships formed at IPF will help create the conditions for even greater growth of offshore wind and a local supply chain, which will benefit our economies, workers, and our planet.”
Key takeaways from 2022 IPF include:
- Public-private partnerships between state and federal governments and businesses of all sizes is key to reaching offshore wind and renewable energy goals. During the conference, policymakers assured attendees that they would explore all avenues to create the conditions necessary to bolster the viability of domestic offshore wind development. Public goals, policy, and grants are vital in supporting private investment to bring about a new clean energy future, with offshore wind at the center.
- By learning from, and partnering with, European offshore wind leaders, American businesses can supercharge domestic offshore wind development. European industry leaders and policymakers have charted the course that led to Europe’s ascension as a global leader in offshore wind and learned the lessons that can be instructive as we chart that course here in the United States.
- Energy security is vital to our economic stability and national security. While offshore wind development has the potential to create tens of thousands of well-paying jobs, it will also provide affordable, clean power and reduce our exposure to foreign energy markets, underscored by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Network announced that the 2023 International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum will take place March 28-30 in Baltimore, Maryland supported by host sponsors Aker Solution, the State of Maryland, and US Wind.
