Dominion Energy Selects StormGeo Weather Forecasting for Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Pilot Turbines

Dominion Energy, owner and developer of Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW), has contracted StormGeo as the sole weather forecast provider for the two-turbine pilot project, which was energized in October 2020.

Dominion Energy operates in 16 states across the U.S., offering clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy to more than seven million customers nationwide. The CVOW pilot is comprised of two Siemens Gamesa 6 MW wind turbines and is the first step towards building the CVOW commercial project, which will be fully constructed in 2026 with 188 turbines.

CVOW is located 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach and, once completed, will have a total capacity of 2,640 MW of clean energy. According to Dominion, CVOW will serve as a catalyst for a new domestic supply chain hub that will serve the U.S. East Coast wind industry.

In addition to providing daily offshore weather forecasting for the CVOW pilot operations, StormGeo supported the project in the construction phase, which was led by Ørsted. “StormGeo provided a strong performance during the construction of CVOW, and we look forward to continuing our relationship throughout operations,” said Joshua Bennett, Vice President of Offshore Wind for Dominion Energy.

For StormGeo, it is an important step in the company’s expansion into U.S. offshore renewables. Hogne Folkestad, StormGeo Vice President for Offshore, said, “Our deep industry knowledge for offshore wind comes from working on more than 100 projects worldwide. With this experience, we are in a unique position to offer the best support to CVOW and other emerging offshore wind projects in the U.S. It is an exciting partnership for us, and we look forward to being a part of it and contributing to its success.”

The CVOW pilot project is the first installed in federal waters and is the only project developed and owned by an electric utility. Forecasting for CVOW is delivered by StormGeo’s 24/7 operations center in Houston, Texas, with offshore wind project support from the company’s headquarters in Bergen, Norway.