From:  SustainableBusiness.com

AECOM, one of the world’s largest architectural and engineering firms, is entering the North American offshore wind industry.

Fishermen’s Energy, LLC, recently awarded the AECOM a contract for project and construction management, engineering, and procurement services for its Fishermen’s Atlantic City Windfarm project.

Located about 2.8 miles off the coast of Atlantic City, N.J., the project is vying with others in Massachusetts and Delaware to be the first North American offshore windfarm in operation.

The project has a planned capacity of 25 megawatts (MW) and will serve as a prototype for larger scale utility projects that are currently in various stages of development.

AECOM is currently supporting Fishermen’s Energy, LLC, in the detailed project planning and scheduling activities as well as in the procurement of construction contracts and major equipment.

“The success of this project will undoubtedly be a catalyst for further implementation of other offshore wind energy projects currently in various stages of development in North America,” says Peter Rooney, vice president and global lead for AECOM’s renewable energy business. “It will bode well for everyone involved in this exciting and challenging industry.”

Although already an established industry in Europe for reducing energy imports, air pollution and greenhouse gases, offshore windfarms’ enormous potential has yet to be realized in North America.

AECOM has the size and strength to become a major player in the US and global wind industry, if it chooses to. The firm has approximately 45,000 employees around the world and had revenue of $7.3 billion last year.

Lucy Labruzzo, senior vice president and AECOM’s director of Energy Services in the U.S. says the company is working to establish a “foothold in the waters off Atlantic City, N.J.” and gain momentum for offshore wind in North America.