Ørsted Cuts Ribbon On Newark Office; Highlights Partnership With NJIT

NEWARK, NJ — Ørsted’s footprint in New Jersey is growing.

On Thursday, a group of elected officials, business leaders and community members gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony at the global “clean energy” company’s new office at Ironside Newark, which is home to its North American Digital Operations Headquarters.

Ørsted also highlighted its 10-year, $1.5 million agreement with the New Jersey Institute Of Technology (NJIT) in Newark at the event. That partnership – announced last year – aims to create new scholarship and career development opportunities in the field of offshore wind and STEM for the university’s engineering and computer science undergraduate students.

• Read More: NJIT In Newark, Ørsted Forge Deal To Create 'Career Pipeline'

In addition to the scholarships, Ørsted is also working with NJIT to develop STEM education and outreach programs to reach underrepresented students in Newark through networking events, funded initiatives and college-prep programming for local elementary, middle and high school students. These programs are offered through the university’s Center for Pre-College Programs and the NJIT-Newark Math and Science Initiative.

“We are proud that to date, we have joined NJIT in offering scholarships to 34 university students and have provided funding to the NJIT Center for Pre-College Programs and the NJIT-Newark Math Success Initiative,” said Kathleen Frangione, head of government affairs and market strategy for Ørsted.

“We are focused on creating local educational opportunities that build solid foundations and bridges to opportunities that enable New Jersey students to have access to new clean energy job opportunities created in their home state,” Frangione said.

According to a news release from Ørsted:

“Through the development of the Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 offshore wind projects, Ørsted is bringing significant economic investment to New Jersey, totaling over $1.5 billion. Ocean Wind 1, developed in partnership with PSEG, anticipates spending $695 million in New Jersey while creating hundreds of construction jobs per year, including jobs associated with the development of the EEW monopile manufacturing facility in Paulsboro, the first of its kind in the U.S. Ocean Wind 2 will invest $1 billion directly in the state and generate over $4.8 billion in net economic benefits for New Jersey, helping to further develop a strong domestic supply chain. In addition, the Ocean Wind 2 project is supporting the launch of an electric truck initiative at the Port of Newark in partnership with Zeem Solutions.”

Mayor Ras Baraka welcomed one of the city’s “newest corporate citizens” to Newark.

“I’m excited by the Ørsted/NJIT partnership to develop STEM education and outreach programs for Newark school children as well as offshore wind scholarships and career development for undergraduates,” Baraka said.

“Newark is developing rapidly as a tech hub, and one reason is the collaborative culture of our corporate anchors and our colleges and universities,” the mayor added.

The Newark opening comes on the heels of Ørsted’s first office, which was opened in Atlantic City in 2018.

“When I attended the first office opening in Atlantic City, I hoped Ørsted would expand its footprint in New Jersey, and here we stand, today in Newark,” New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy said.

“The educational, societal, and economic benefits of offshore wind need to be felt throughout the state of New Jersey and the country, and today is another step toward that realization,” Murphy added.

• See related article: NJ's Offshore Wind Farms Grow To 9; Firms Bid $4B To Operate
• See related article: Ocean City Residents Protest Ørsted's Offshore Wind Farm
• See related article: Wind Turbine Factory To Bring Jobs To Small South Jersey Town

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