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​Over the first half of the year, there has been some incredible movement in Renewables. Right now, the main talking point is Vineyard Wind, an 800 MW offshore wind farm that is a joint venture between Avangrid Renewables and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP). They have recently had the final sign off to begin construction for the second half of this year. To give you an idea of the scale of this project, it will produce enough power to support 400,000 homes. Although not the largest project globally, it is the first large-scale offshore project for the US that is bound to attract more talent to the industry.

The whole East Coast seafront from South Carolina to Massachusetts will hopefully see Vineyard as a starting point for something great. Dare it be said, The next Gold Rush. By Vineyard setting the path for others to follow, it should bring talent to the areas and less reliance on Europeans filling the jobs.

Talent shortages in the market right now are becoming more and more apparent at the lower levels. Attraction to the industry seems to be missing, and the lack of trained professionals is hampering the development even more. Nevertheless, the belief that offshore will be bringing more excitement and better standards to the US industry is very much real, and I look forward to seeing what the rest of 2021 brings.