Under a backdrop of wind turbines under construction at New London’s State Pier, State Senator Norm Needleman (D-Essex), Senate Chair of the Energy & Technology Committee, on Wednesday joined state leaders including U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes, joined State Senator Martha Marx (D-New London), State Representative Anthony Nolan (D-New London) and Connecticut Port Authority Interim Executive Director Ulysses Hammond to celebrate the U.S. Department of Energy’s announcement of a $389 million federal grant to support “Power Up New England.”

The hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grant funding for “Power Up New England” will fund new and upgraded transmission points in Southeast Massachusetts and Connecticut to support up to 4,800 megawatts of offshore wind and energy storage systems in Connecticut and Maine. The project seeks to improve the resilience of Connecticut’s grid and pursue alternative forms of energy generation that will benefit the state.

The work in question off the coast of southeast Connecticut will further benefit construction jobs in the region, further supporting efforts at State Pier to improve renewable energy generation.

“This grant is incredible news for Connecticut and New England and promises new advances in energy generation in the whole region, supporting offshore clean energy, better protections against service interruptions and issues and possibly even lower consumer costs,” said Sen. Needleman. “The hundreds of jobs and extended support for our state’s workforce only further bolster these efforts. I’m encouraged to see how these efforts progress in the future.”

“Power Up New England” will serve to support several facets of Connecticut and New England’s grid, with focus on improving grid resilience, increasing energy generation, greater diversity of resources in power creation and increased reliability, lowering consumer costs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the process.

The program receiving funding will also create high-quality jobs and workforce development and training opportunities, including the development of a new institute for clean energy at UConn.

Caption: Senator Needleman, second from left, stands with state and federal leaders Wednesday in New London.