Equinor Doubles Down on US Offshore Wind
Norwegian energy giant Equinor is cementing its leadership in the US offshore wind market with its Empire Wind project, set to power 500,000 homes and create over 4,000 jobs. The company is leveraging its deep ocean engineering expertise to target 10-12 GW of installed capacity by 2030, a major strategic bet on the American renewable energy transition.
To accelerate its US ambitions, Equinor sold a 50% stake in its Empire Wind and Beacon Wind projects to BP for $1.1 billion, forming a strategic partnership to jointly develop up to 4.4 GW. While BP entered the US offshore wind market through this deal, Equinor remains the operator for the development, construction, and operations phases of the projects. The project's first phase, the 810 MW Empire Wind 1, will connect directly to the New York City grid, a first for an offshore wind farm. This involves a major infrastructure overhaul of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, which is being transformed into a dedicated staging, assembly, and operations hub for the wind farm. Development faced a critical hurdle in December 2025 when the Department of the Interior ordered a suspension of all work, citing national security risks related to potential radar interference from the turbines. The stop-work order impacted five major US offshore wind projects and threatened significant delays for Empire Wind, which was already more than 60% complete. Work resumed after Empire Wind was granted a preliminary injunction in January 2026, allowing construction activities to restart while the underlying legal challenge to the suspension proceeds. The project is now advancing toward a commercial operation date of 2027 for its first phase. The project's economics are bolstered by the Inflation Reduction Act, which provides significant tax credits and direct support for domestic manufacturing of offshore wind components. The law incentivizes developers to use U.S.-made parts and meet prevailing wage and apprenticeship standards, making domestic supply chains more cost-competitive for the first time. In a recent strategic pivot to streamline decision-making, Equinor and BP dissolved their joint venture. Equinor took 100% ownership of the Empire Wind lease, while BP took full control of the Beacon Wind projects, positioning each company to independently advance their respective assets.
