Summary - Offshore Wind Transmission US 2026 (10th Annual Conference). Online registration by Cvent

Over the past decade, the US offshore wind industry grew from early ambition into a sector with real projects in the water, emerging supply chains, and transmission strategies established to accommodate large-scale offshore generation. As we prepare to convene for the 10th edition of the Offshore Wind Transmission US conference on September 23, 2026, at Jay Conference Center, Midtown East, New York, the sector faces a consequential turning point. The landscape has shifted more rapidly and more deliberately than at any previous point in the sector's history.

The past year has been a reminder that progress is seldom straightforward. One of the fastest-growing segments of energy transition until about a year and a half ago, offshore wind in the US is now navigating a far more uncertain environment. Development timelines have slowed, projects have been cancelled or restructured, and investment decisions have become increasingly cautious. Yet interest in offshore wind, and the transmission infrastructure required to support it, has not disappeared. Many projects continue to move forward, and key stakeholders remain committed to positioning the sector for renewed growth when conditions allow.

The geography of opportunity is also expanding. Potential imports of offshore wind electricity from Canada into New England and New York markets are already being discussed as an alternative to delayed or cancelled domestic generation. The cross-border dimension of offshore wind transmission, once considered a long-term concept, is now an immediate planning challenge.

Meanwhile, the ongoing Middle East crisis continues to pressure global fuel markets, reinforcing the case for renewable energy expansion. Offshore wind remains central to that strategy, as continued expansion across Europe and Asia demonstrates. The economics and technology fundamentals remain strong. In the US, it is policy, not industry readiness, that is holding the sector back. That distinction matters as the sector looks ahead.

The industry arriving at this conference is very different from the one that gathered a year ago. Developers are making difficult strategic decisions. Utilities are reassessing procurement and transmission plans. Investments already committed in ports, manufacturing facilities, and workforce development will deliver their full value only when offshore wind deployment resumes at scale.

The question before this industry is no longer simply how to accelerate. It is how to preserve the progress, expertise, and infrastructure built over the past decade, and how to position the sector for renewed growth when conditions improve.

A decade of industry collaboration has carried offshore wind through periods of optimism, supply chain disruption, rising costs, and now political headwinds. The 10th edition of this conference will examine where the industry stands, what has endured, and how to build on it.