Equinor and BP have agreed to separately pursue their joint offshore wind projects in the US through a swap transaction under which the Norwegian oil and gas giant will take full ownership of the Empire Wind lease and projects and the UK supermajor taking over the Beacon Wind lease and projects.
The agreement will give Equinor 100% ownership of Empire Offshore Wind Holdings and BP’s 50% share of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal lease. At the same time, BP gets Beacon Wind Holdings and the associated project company that holds the Astoria Gateway for Renewable Energy site.
After the duo struck the deal, a bid was submitted for the Empire Wind 1 project in New York’s fourth offshore wind solicitation round, which closed on January 25. It has also been agreed with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to terminate the Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificate (OREC) purchase and sale agreement for the Beacon Wind 1 project.
Subject to regulatory approval, closing of the transaction is expected in Q2 or Q3 2024.
The Empire Wind lease was awarded to Equinor in 2017. It is being developed in two projects, with a potential capacity of 810 MW, and above 1,200 MW. Equinor secured the Beacon Wind lease in 2019. It is also being developed in two projects, one with a potential capacity of 1,230 MW and another with a capacity of about 1,360 MW. BP bought into these assets in 2020 for $1.1bn.
