Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s (MSIM) private infrastructure platform Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) and logistics, marine and energy solutions company Crowley announced the launch of Crowley Wind Services Holdings, forming a new joint venture aimed at advancing offshore wind energy solutions for the U.S.

The new joint venture will focus on repurposing and operating existing U.S. port facilities, and leasing them to offshore wind developers under long-term contracts, supporting the manufacture, assembly and storage of wind farm components. The terminals will also provide developers with maritime services, such as vessels to transport components from ports to offshore wind installations.

Bob Karl, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Crowley Wind Services, said:

“The partnership of our two companies will help lead the growth of the wind energy sector and provide clean, renewable energy for the U.S. through high-quality maritime and logistics operations and services. Our collaboration will help create not just more value as a business, but cleaner, more sustainable energy for our communities.”

The launch of the new venture comes as the U.S. is poised to significantly increase the production of offshore wind as part of a series of moves aimed at ramping clean energy capacity. In 2021, the Biden administration set a target to deploy 30 GW off offshore wind capacity by 2030, equivalent to the power required to meet the demand of more than 10 million American homes for a year, and avoid 78 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.

Daniel Sailors, Managing Director at MSIP, said:

“In our view, the U.S. offshore wind industry is in its early stages with ambitious goals to develop 30 gigawatts of capacity from offshore wind by 2030 and unlock a pathway to 110 gigawatts by 2050. We believe port infrastructure is essential to the build-out and long-term maintenance of offshore wind projects and we are excited to partner with Crowley to provide the foundational infrastructure that will enable the development of this important industry.”

Crowley Wind Services Holdings will be majority owned by funds managed by MSIP, and operated by Crowley.