First monopile installed at Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project

The first monopile foundation for the 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) offshore wind farm, the largest offshore wind farm in the United States, has been installed approximately 47 miles off the Virginia coast. The Monopal was installed by Orion, DEME Group’s heavy lifting vessel.

When completed in late 2026, CVOW will consist of 176 turbines that will generate enough clean, renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes and is expected to generate $3 billion in fuel savings for customers in its first 10 years of operation .

“This is a monumental day for the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind team, which has worked tirelessly to stay on budget and on schedule for this project to provide our customers with reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy,” said Robert M. Blue, president of Dominion Energy. President and CEO. “We are taking extensive precautions to ensure this project fully protects the environment and marine species.”

The monopile foundations being built at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal are single vertical steel cylinders manufactured by world leader EEW SPC and installed in the seabed to support the wind turbine generators. Under the project’s construction schedule, Dominion Energy will continue monopile installation through fall 2024 and will resume installation in May 2025.

“We are proud to partner with Dominion Energy on this groundbreaking project,” said Bill White, president of DEME Offshore US. “The DEME Orion vessel, equipped with industry-leading Vibro Hammer technology, has been specifically designed for the efficient installation of massive CVOW monopiles, all weighing over 1,000 tons. Our talented design team will include qualified American pile drivers, creating a solid and prepared workforce. We look forward to working with our consortium partner, Prysmian, to help bring Virginia-generated energy to the Commonwealth.

To protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale, no monopiles will be installed between November 1 and April 30, when the whales are expected to migrate past the project area. Additional measures to protect whales and other aquatic life include the use of perforated hoses with bubble curtains through which air is pumped – to create a wall of bubbles around the monopiles during installation and reduce sound waves underwater. The vessels will also be manned by protected species observers and will adhere to speed limits to avoid collisions with protected species.

More than 800 Virginia employees – nearly 670 in the Hampton Roads area – have been involved with the CVOW project or other companies supporting CVOW. This work includes activities related to the redevelopment of the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, construction of an offshore wind monitoring and coordination center, marine supplies, ship maintenance, heavy cargo transport and rigging, cyber security, food services and hospitality. Once commercial operation of the facility begins, over 1,000 local jobs will be required to support the ongoing operation and maintenance of the facility.

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