Governor Hochul: “We will be the future of clean energy. We will be the future of clean energy. Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the future. This is what the future looks like for our green energy economy and how we're going to protect this fragile planet that's been entrusted to us for the time that we live on this planet.”
Earlier today at the Port of Albany, Governor Kathy Hochul, alongside U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm, Congressman Paul Tonko and other elected officials, announced the finalization of contracts between the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and Empire Wind Offshore LLC and Beacon Wind LLC, each a 50-50 partnership between Equinor and bp, for the Empire Wind 2 and Beacon Wind offshore wind projects, representing a key milestone in the advancement of offshore wind development in New York State.
VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube here and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format here.
AUDIO of the event is available here.
PHOTOS of the event are available on the Governor's Flickr page.
A rush transcript of the Governor’s remarks are available below:
Good morning. Paul Tonko never disappoints. He's always so energetic even in the morning, so thank you. Thank you. What a fabulous day to be here. I am so excited about this announcement. And also, I want to thank the collaboration that brought us here together today. So many individuals, those who are with us and those who are not, literally Senator Gillibrand was scheduled to be here. She had called me earlier. We talked about this. You're going to spend some time with Secretary Granholm and talk about women in power and all the challenges we face. But we'll have that bonding session later, but Senator Gillibrand sends her regrets, I know, as well. Senator Schumer, great partner to have, the Majority Leader of the entire Senate as our own representative, has been nothing short of extraordinary as well as having an incredible team here with our congressmen. We used to sit together in Congress and lament what it was like to be in the minority. Never want to be there again. It's great to be in the majority. So, thank you for your friendship.
And also our local partners, great friends, like Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who we had breakfast with this morning, we talked to other mayors about the challenges they're facing and how we can work together to overcome them as well. And the Port of Albany, Richard, this is just incredible. What a jewel this is for us to lay claim to and say that this is part of our state's destiny, part of our history, part of our assets and our friends at Equinor Environment and bp, you made it happen. You made this happen, and we know that you're going to have many more opportunities to do more. And County Executive McCoy, great to see you. Assemblyman John McDonald, a great, great friend.
Also the team we have in New York State government is absolutely second to none. Extraordinary leaders, people who are so committed to the cause and are referring to Doreen Harris, the leader of NYSERDA. Let's give her a round of applause for all she has done for us. And Basil Seggos. Basil's head of our DEC. They're the ones who make it happen. And I'm so energized and excited to be partnering with them in this new capacity that I've been in just about five months.
Also, the men and women of labor who will be building this. Let's give them a round of applause. They're the unsung heroes. They're the ones who will build back our country. And we're so proud of all of them as well.
And I'll be referring some comments to our very special guests in a couple of moments. But in 2017, I was addressing a global conference on offshore wind. People from all around the world, came to this facility in Manhattan, it was about 6,000 people so I’m told. I stood there, with the audacity of a New Yorker, and declared that New York State will be the epicenter of offshore wind, and indeed all wind power will come through New York State. Back then people said, well, that's pretty bold, but can they make it happen? Well, you can declare it first, but yes, you have to show results.
I said, we will be the future of clean energy. Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the future. This is what the future looks like for our green energy economy and how we're going to protect this fragile planet that's been entrusted to us for the time that we live on this planet. It's our responsibility and issues affecting Mother Earth are personal to me as someone who grew up in a place called Lackawanna, New York, where we saw the effects of pollution every single day. It was in the air we breathe. It was the orange sky that we looked out on and it was what we saw happening to beautiful Lake Erie, it became a toxic wasteland.
So, this is personal to me, to come together here today and see people who also share that sense of moral obligation that we have to protect and ensure that we're doing it in the smartest, best ways. And that's what offshore wind is all about. And what is so fabulous is that we have a president who knows this and sees this and wants this to just explode as a burgeoning industry for us here in our country to give us the competitiveness that we need to succeed as we come through this pandemic. And when I stood on the White House lawn with him as he signed the infrastructure bill into law, it was a transformational moment in our nation's history.
Just like when my predecessor in the governor's mansion and former president FDR did, when he saw the opportunity, when you build projects like the Port of Albany and build back this country, that's how you rise up from whatever has happened, whether it's the crash of ‘29 or it's the pandemic of 2020, ‘21, unfortunately, ‘22, and it's going to stop right there because I'm not going any further with this pandemic. We'll have some good news to report on that later.
So, we put out a vision, we have a roadmap, we have the individuals committed to making it happen. We find our private sector partners, we find the locations and investing in a port like this. And thank you, Joe Biden and the Department of Energy, Department Transportation for making the $29 million. And I heard 30, so I'll take 30, 30 anyone, 31, 32.
Right here, those investments make a difference. They make a difference and I'm so energized by the prospects of coming back here and seeing towers manufactured here. 400 foot long towers. Have you ever seen a football field? Okay, you need to turn on TV tomorrow night, there's a special game going on Saturday night, Buffalo Bills. Watch look how long that field is. That's how long - someone from New England here. There's the door.
Sorry about that. That’s as long as the football field and picture the image of them heading down the Hudson River on barges, after being manufactured here, heading down the river, people are going to look at that and all the beautiful towns and communities we have along the say, wow, look, what's going down. That's the future heading down the Hudson River. Just like Henry Hudson in 1609 saw the future as he came up the Hudson River. This place is special. We have a legacy of manufacturing. It's in our DNA. We know how to build steel. We know how to build with our hands and make projects that will sustain whatever Mother Nature throws our way.
And that's what we're looking for. And the offshore wind projects that are going to be off of the coast of Long Island. And we're going to be able to power millions of homes, create 5,200 jobs, have the whole ecosystem, the supply chain, that has been missing before and it's happening here. Just a couple of days ago, I made another announcement with another female member of the Biden administration, Secretary of Interior Haaland, and working with our friend across the river, the Governor of New Jersey, we said together we're going to create the necessary ecosystem so all the supply chain can be made right here.
That's how we keep investing, not just in our economy, but in people, people will do those jobs. We also have to give the people the skills they need to manufacture. You don't wake up one day and know how to build one of these. You need training. So we're investing $20 million right here in Hudson Valley Community College to train the people in the skill so they can take these jobs.
So, that's how it all comes together. And I was proud to announce a $500 million investment in this infrastructure, in offshore wind, and clean energy to make sure we never say we didn't have the resources to do what was right. I will make sure of that. I’m putting together my budget as we speak, this is a statement of our commitments here in the state of New York.
So, I put out a challenge to the rest of the nation, try to catch up, try to catch up because we want to make sure that we can power homes, power businesses in a way that is smart, that makes up for mankind's assault on mother nature. Women wouldn't do that. It was mankind's assault on Mother Nature. We do things differently here. I’ve got to stop taking shots like that.
But as I'm about to introduce someone who knows what it's like to be a great partner, an individual who was the first female governor of Michigan and was called to lead during an extraordinary time. The automotive industry was literally brought to its knees during a recession and it took a strong, steady hand. An individual who says, you know, we're going to get through this. An individual who inspired the people of her state to believe again, and what a resurgent that industry has seen. We've been proud of what you've accomplished and now using your talents in figuring out the transition from the old legacy businesses to the new future.
And you saw this happening before most did. And this is who I'm speaking about. The former Governor of Michigan, the Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, who President Biden saw as someone who could be a partner to help inspire all of us. Just like she inspired the people of Michigan at a time when they needed her the most.
That's what we're so blessed to have with this administration in Washington. And those are the partners that I call my friends, my allies, and we will get through this pandemic and lead into a whole different future. And it all starts in places like the Port of Albany today.
Ladies and gentlemen, let's give a warm New York welcome to Secretary Jennifer Granholm.