Nantucket reaches $10.5M settlement with GE subsidiary over Vineyard Wind turbine failure

The town of Nantucket, Mass. has announced it reached a $10.5 million settlement with a subsidiary of General Electric to compensate the island community and local businesses for financial losses suffered as a result of a July 13, 2024 failure of a wind turbine blade failure on the Vineyard Wind 1 project.

Town officials announced the settlement in a press release issue early Friday. GE Vernova produced the turbine blades that fell from towers erected as part of the offshore wind farm project and crashed into the ocean.

The result was foam, fiberglass and other debris ended up on Nantucket’s shores during the middle of the summer tourist season. 

The Vineyard Wind 1 project is the first large wind farm project in the United States. It is located 15 miles south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, and 35 miles from mainland Massachusetts.

Town officials said a claims fund will be established to provide compensation for the economic harm caused by the problem, with a professional, independent third-party administrator to evaluate claims and issue payments. 

Nantucket officials praised GE Vernova for reaching the agreement. Craig Gilvarg, a spokesman for Vineyard Wind, said in a statement that the settlement agreement "is the product of diligent, thorough, and cooperative negotiations between the parties over the past year."

"Vineyard Wind appreciates the good faith, respectful, and productive approach demonstrated by GE Vernova and the town of Nantucket, which was critical toward reaching this fair and conclusive settlement.” Gilvarg said.

For a time, work on the the wind farm project was halted as a result of the problems with the turbine and it has fallen behind schedule. When completed later this year, it is expected to provide electricity for more than 400,000 homes and businesses in Massachusetts.