US Wind hires industry veteran to head external affairs
US Wind hires industry veteran to head external affairs
Nancy Sopko joins the offshore wind developer’s leadership team as development ramps up
December 18, 2020 – Today, US Wind Inc. (“US Wind”) announced the hiring of Nancy Sopko as the company’s new Director of External Affairs, effective January 11, 2021. In her new role, Sopko will lead the company’s government and public affairs initiatives, including key stakeholder outreach,as US Wind ramps up development of its major offshore wind facility off the coast of Maryland.
“Nancy has a fantasic track record and reputation for her decade-plus work in offshore wind policy, advocacy and public engagement, earning the respect of industry leaders, government officials and public stakeholders alike,” said Jeff Grybowski, US Wind CEO. “She is the first new hire US Wind has made since I joined as CEO last month, and we couldn’t be more pleased for her to be part of our growing team as we accelerate our development efforts in Maryland.”
Sopko joins US Wind from the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind (SIOW), an independent project out of the University of Delaware, where she has been leading the industry’s collective engagement with the commercial fishing community. Prior to her role as the executive director of SIOW, Sopko served as the director of offshore wind policy at the American Wind Energy Association. Her experience also includes roles as a policy advocate at Oceana, a nonprofit ocean conservation group, and as a legislative counsel on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
“I’m delighted to be joining the US Wind team to deliver offshore wind power to the Old Line State,” said Sopko. “US Wind was an early mover in the US offshore wind industry, and now working with Apollo and with the addition of Jeff Grybowski as CEO creates a recipe for success. It is a privilege to be able to work with the US Wind team to meet Maryland’s renewable energy goals and create local jobs in the process.”
US Wind acquired a 80,000-acre federal lease area off of the coast of Maryland in 2014. In 2017, the company was awarded Offshore Renewable Energy Credits (ORECs) from the State of Maryland for the first phase of its MarWin project. In total, the company’s lease area can support approximately 1.5 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind energy capacity. In 2019, Maryland passed the Clean Energy Jobs Act, which increased the state’s offshore wind energy requirements, calling for an additional 1.2 GW to be procured from developers with projects near the state’s coast.
About US Wind
US Wind was founded in 2011 and has established its position as a premier offshore wind energy development company in the United States. In 2014, US Wind obtained a federal lease for site control to develop approximately 1.5 GW of offshore wind power generation off the coast of Maryland. US Wind is majority owned by Renexia SpA, a leader in renewable energy development in Italy and a subsidiary of Toto Holding SpA. Toto Holding SpA has more than 40 years of experience specializing in large construction and infrastructure projects, primarily in the energy, transportation, and aviation sectors.
