IN PERSONAL MEETINGS WITH GE CEO & VESTAS WIND TECH PRESIDENT, SCHUMER URGES COMPANIES TO MAKE CAPITAL REGION HOME OF FUTURE TURBINE MANUFACTURING; SENATOR SAYS PORT OF ALBANY $$ HE SECURED WILL GIVE COMPANIES THE LIFT THEY NEED TO INVEST & EXPAND IN NY

With NY Leading The Way On Offshore Wind, Schumer Pushes Vestas, GE To Build Wind Supply Chain In NY As The State Moves Forward On A Major Build-Out Of Offshore Wind

Schumer Has Proposed Historic Incentives & Investments In Clean Energy To Help Companies Like GE And Vestas Expand In Places Like Upstate New York

Schumer To GE And Vestas: Picking NY Will Be A Win-Win-Win, Boosting Local Economy, Creating Jobs, And Bolstering NY’s Wind Industry

Adding to his continued advocacy to boost Upstate New York as a leader in clean energy and manufacturing, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer recently met with the CEO of General Electric, Larry Culp, to continue his advocacy for the company to expand in New York by building new capacity to manufacture wind technology. Schumer also has met with President of Vestas-American Wind Technology, Laura Beane, about the company’s interest in expanding their operations in the U.S., and urged her to consider New York, including in the Capital Region. Schumer’s meeting with GE continues his ongoing advocacy for GE to build on its long tradition of manufacturing in New York's Capital Region to include new manufacturing of wind technology. Schumer said Vestas already has a strong relationship with New York, with their turbines deployed for onshore wind power in the state. Last year, Empire Offshore Wind, a joint venture between Equinor and bp, named Vestas as the preferred turbine supplier for the Empire Wind 1 and Empire Wind 2 the first offshore wind development to support New York's goal of 9,000 MW of offshore wind energy by 2035. Currently, Vestas is expected to deliver over 130 wind turbine generators.  Schumer further highlighted New York’s leadership in renewable energy, including wind power, and the federal investment he has secured to build up infrastructure across the state to support the wind supply chain, including the Port of Albany and the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.

“New York is leading the nation with ambitious renewable energy goals and the deployment of offshore wind, but we can’t stop there. We need to do all we can to make sure this clean technology is made in America, and New York is primed to be home to that manufacturing. I made it clear to both GE and Vestas that I strongly support locating new wind technology manufacturing in New York, and the Capital Region is especially well positioned given GE’s long history there and the major federal investments I have secured to make the Port of Albany an offshore wind supply chain hub, along with the $1.5 million job training center en route thanks to funding I was also able to secure,” said Senator Schumer. “New York is already committed to making bold investments in offshore wind, and with the federal incentives I am fighting to deliver for the clean energy sector and for manufacturing, GE and Vestas can reach new heights by choosing Upstate NY for new job creating manufacturing investment to build the nation’s wind supply chain and blow a further gust of wind into further making the Empire State the leader in the fight against climate change.”

This push comes on the heels of Schumer personally delivering $1.5 million to create an Albany South End Workforce Training Center to prepare the local workforce and expand job training to underserved residents for hundreds of new clean energy jobs at the Port of Albany. The training center builds on the $29.5 million Senator Schumer delivered last year for the Port of Albany Offshore Wind Tower Manufacturing Project through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) Port Infrastructure Development Grant program. Schumer called Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg multiple times to urge approval of the historic $29.5 million in MARAD funding for the Capital Region. The project will be one of the first large-scale offshore wind tower manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and is expected to create an estimated 500 construction jobs and 550 direct and full-time new manufacturing and support jobs. The senator said that this project and New York State’s leadership in boosting the clean energy sector make New York uniquely suited to be the home to wind technology manufacturing by Vestas, GE, and other companies as they build out domestic supply chains to support the ramped up deployment of offshore wind in the U.S.

Schumer has a long history fighting to help revitalize the Port of Albany. In 2016, Schumer secured $17.6 million for the Port of Albany through the USDOT Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant. This funding supported a complete overhaul of the Port of Albany, including reconstructing the entire outdoor maritime terminal, building a new warehouse, expanding the wharf, and significantly improving the port’s roadways.  Schumer then personally visited the Port of Albany in 2019 to see the progress and continue his commitment to the Port of Albany’s economic expansion.

Earlier this year, Schumer has also secured $24.9 million in federal funding for the buildout of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal from the MARAD Port Infrastructure program, which further provides the necessary investment for the offshore wind supply chain to locate to New York. Schumer also recently began a push for major federal funding to prepare Arthur Kill Marine Terminal on Staten Island to be an additional port hub to support the offshore wind supply chain.

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