Thousands converge in Baltimore for three days of discussion, learning, networking, and dealmaking
BALTIMORE — The premier offshore wind energy conference in the Americas closed today on a high note after an action-packed three days of programming that featured a wide range of federal, state, and local government officials alongside industry leaders from the United States and around the world. The tenth annual International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum (IPF), hosted by the Oceantic Network in Baltimore, gathered nearly 4,000 attendees from 1,000 companies and organizations, more than 250 speakers, and nearly 20 international delegations.
The 2023 IPF opened on Monday with more than one dozen pre-conference events, trainings, and tours, followed by two days of speakers, panels, workshops, networking events, exhibitions, and session presentations.
This year’s special guests included Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Maryland Governor Wes Moore,and White House National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi. Other featured speakers included a dynamic group of domestic policymakers, decision makers, and business leaders, including Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Elizabeth Klein and Deputy Director Walter Cruickshank, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Director Kevin Sligh and Deputy Director Paul Huang, U.S. Department of Energy Deputy Secretary David Turk, President and CEO of NYSERDA Doreen Harris, Rise Light & Power CEO Clint Plummer, CEO of Offshore Wind at General Electric Jan Kjaersgaard, Ørsted Americas CEO David Hardy, and U.S. Wind CEO Jeffrey Grybowski.
The Women in Wind luncheon was the final panel of IPF and included Director of Business Development at Boskalis Jamie Lescinski, former BOEM Director and Senior Policy Director for Energy and Climate at Foley and Hoag Amanda Lefton, Executive Vice President for Public Affairs at Invenergy Kelly Speakes-Backman, and Chief Finance Officer for Low Carbon at BP Erin Eisenberg.
“When we held our first IPF in a small boardroom on Baltimore Harbor, we couldn’t have imagined the progress the offshore wind industry has made,” said Oceantic Network President and CEO Liz Burdock. “Our success over the last decade has been driven by the steadfast commitment of policymakers, regulators, investors, companies, and the American public. From the plenary session to the show floor, this year’s successful IPF speaks to the incredible moment we are in as an industry and we look forward to building on this momentum.”
The exhibition floor at IPF turned into a hub for offshore wind discussion and dealmaking, with more than 375 exhibitors from 27 countries. IPF attendees were the first to hear about Maryland Governor Wes Moore’s 8.5 GW offshore wind commitment and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Strategy to Advance Offshore Wind Energy in the United States, which was announced at IPF on Wednesday.
The Maryland Energy Administration also awarded a $1.25 million grant to the Oceantic Network to develop and implement an Offshore Wind Experience Hub on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The hub will serve as an immersive, educational experience that will raise awareness about the potential of offshore wind.
Key takeaways from 2023 IPF include:
- State coordination and federal leadership is key to sustaining growth in American offshore wind. The lessons we have learned over the past decade about how to connect, how to coordinate, how to innovate, and how to build a domestic supply chain that can sustain and scale an industry along U.S. coastlines are now being applied to unlock even greater opportunities for the offshore wind market.
- As the industry rapidly moves toward commercialization, stakeholders need to start having tough conversations about how to build a sustainable supply chain. Addressing workforce and supply chain constraints, grid and transmission bottlenecks, and the rising costs to develop offshore wind projects are critical to accelerating electrification and unlocking new markets for offshore wind.
- Offshore wind is the tip of the spear when it comes to ocean renewable energy. Not only can it power our homes and businesses, but it can be the foundation for new technologies, new innovations, and breakthroughs in energy capture and storage.
The Network announced that the 2024 International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum will take place April 23-25 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
For more information or to access recordings, contact Melinda Skea
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As a non-profit organization, the Oceantic Network’s driving purpose is to inform, coordinate, and mobilize human ingenuity, enterprise, and labor to take advantage of the urgent need to tap the vast offshore wind and renewable energy resources that lie in the world’s oceans. The collective, coordinated efforts of our 600+ members equip communities and nations to accelerate the transition to clean energy and create economic opportunities.
