Edison Chouest Offshore has launched its new U.S.-built service operations vessel (SOV), the ECO Liberty, in Louisiana, ahead of deployment to support offshore wind construction off the coast of New York.
The ECO Liberty will assist with installation work at Equinor’s 810-megawatt Empire Wind 1 project and is expected to begin operations later this summer.
Constructed with American steel and components sourced from multiple Gulf Coast states, the vessel was built by over 500 workers at Edison Chouest’s shipyards. Equinor highlighted the launch as an example of domestic supply chain development in support of offshore renewable energy.
“Equinor is grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with Louisiana’s world-class shipbuilding industry as we support the Trump Administration’s efforts to expand U.S. vessel manufacturing,” said Molly Morris, President of Equinor Renewables Americas.
Once in New York, the ECO Liberty will be homeported at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, which is serving as the staging, operations, and maintenance hub for the Empire Wind development.
The Empire Wind 1 project, located off the southern coast of Long Island, is being developed by Equinor and BP, and is among the first large-scale offshore wind farms advancing in U.S. federal waters.
