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Rhode Island Construction Jobs Created by Deepwater Wind

Posted on January 20, 2009

Many new Rhode Island construction jobs and other permanent jobs will be created when Deepwater Wind builds an offshore wind farm near Rhode Island.

Gov. Donald Carcieri recently announced that Rhode Island expects Deepwater Wind to begin construction on the offshore wind farm in 2010. The wind farm should generate about 1.3 million megawatt-hours each year, or about 15 percent of the state’s electricity use, according to an article by the National Examiner.

As part of its agreement with the state, Deepwater also plans to establish a regional development office and build a facility in Quonset, both of which will create about 800 jobs in Rhode Island with wages of $60 million per year. The wind farm also will help the state reach its 20-percent renewable energy goal.

“This agreement sets the stage for Rhode Island to be the leader in the emerging renewable energy industry in the Northeast, and brings us one step closer to increasing our use of renewable sources to generate 20 percent of our electricity needs,” Carcieri said in a press release. “With this agreement, we have set a clear timetable for the development including the construction of a major manufacturing facility at Quonset, bringing an estimated 800 high quality jobs to Rhode Island.”

The wind farm is expected to be up and running by mid-2012. Researchers at the University of Delaware and Stanford University found that the aquatic region from Massachusetts to North Carolina is capable of producing 330 gigawatts of power, enough for more than 40 million homes.

“We are delighted to have reached this important milestone with Governor Carcieri and the state of Rhode Island,” Chris Wissemann, Deepwater Wind’s COO, said in the press release. “We are aggressively moving forward with our plan to deliver renewable energy and develop a green collar industry in the state by building North America’s first off-shore wind farm. We are looking forward to working with state and federal authorities to begin construction in late 2010.”

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