BP, Equinor form strategic partnership for offshore wind projects in US

London — BP and Equinor have formed a new strategic partnership to develop offshore wind projects in the US that will see the companies jointly develop existing offshore wind leases on the US east coast and pursue further opportunities in the US offshore wind sector.

As well as forming the new strategic partnership, BP is to buy a 50% interest in both the Empire Wind and Beacon Wind assets from Equinor for $1.1 billion, the companies said Sept. 10.

"This is an important early step in the delivery of our new strategy and our pivot to truly becoming an integrated energy company," BP CEO Bernard Looney said in a statement.

"Offshore wind is growing at around 20%/year globally and is recognized as being a core part of meeting the world's need to limit emissions," Looney said.

Currently, Equinor holds a 100% interest in both the Empire Wind lease, located off the coast of New York state, and the Beacon Wind lease, located off the Massachusetts coast.

"The transaction is in line with Equinor's renewable strategy to access attractive acreage early and at scale, mature projects, and capture value by de-risking high equity ownership positions," Equinor said in a separate statement.

Equinor will remain the operator of the projects in these leases through the development, construction and operations phases, it said.

"We look forward to working with BP who share our strong ambition to grow in renewable energy," CEO Eldar Saetre said.

"Our partnership underlines both companies' strong commitment to accelerate the energy transition and combining our strengths will enable us to grow a profitable offshore wind business together in the US," Saetre said.

BP strategy

BP said the agreement with Equinor follows the announcement of its new strategy that includes aims to increase its annual low carbon investment 10-fold to around $5 billion each year and grow its developed renewable generating capacity from 2.5 GW in 2019 to around 50 GW by 2030.

The Empire Wind lease area has a potential generation capacity of 2 GW, while Beacon Wind when fully developed is expected to have a total generating capacity of 2.4 GW.

First power from Empire Wind's phase 1 is expected in the mid-2020s and phase 2 is preparing for upcoming solicitations.

Beacon Wind will also be developed for future solicitation opportunities and will begin a review process to secure all necessary permits for the project.