One early morning this week in ocean waters off the coasts of Rhode Island and New York, signs of the nascent wind industry were all around.
Aaron Smith, President and CEO of the Offshore Marine Service Association, center, peers through binoculars at ships installing the South Fork Wind project, as Capt. Rick Spaid, left, pilots the vessel Jones Act Enforcer, Tuesday, July 11, 2023, off the coast of Rhode Island. The trade association that represents the offshore service industry is going to great lengths to make sure that jobs go to Americans as the U.S. offshore wind industry ramps up.
The ship is named the Jones Act Enforcer, after the century-old law that says the transport of merchandise between U.S. points is reserved for U.S.-built, owned and documented vessels. The motto: “We’ll be watching.” Smith was documenting operations to show to federal law enforcement officials and members of Congress.
Ørsted responded that 75% of the vessels supporting South Fork Wind’s offshore construction are U.S.-flagged, including barges, tugs, crew transport vessels and fishing vessels that monitor for safety and marine mammals. But the larger U.S.-flagged offshore wind vessels aren't built yet. Even so, the installation vessels for South Fork Wind have American union workers on board, the company told the AP.
But Smith said he feels that offshore wind developers are violating the spirit of the act. He said he worries investors won’t finance the building of offshore ships if they're going to compete against foreign vessels with cheaper day rates, largely because foreign crews can be paid less. That would create a cycle where developers keep using foreign vessels because no U.S. vessels are available.
Before arriving in Massachusetts, the Enforcer was off the coast of Virginia where Dominion Energy plans an offshore wind farm. Smith was seeing if foreign vessels were surveying the area for unexploded ordnance, and he said they were, despite at least four of his member companies bidding on the job.
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