‘THE CLIMATE INNOVATION HUB FOR THE WORLD’
Healey highlights legislation in visit to Chelmsford cleantech company
CHELMSFORD » Gov. Maura Healey made an appearance at the Triton Anchor facility in Chelmsford Thursday afternoon to highlight local businesses exploring green energy and to tout the Mass Leads Act, which she filed last month.
The $3.5 billion omnibus economic development bill, if passed by the state Legislature, would reauthorize the Life Science Initiative for 10 years, and would invest $1 billion in climate-related technologies over the next decade in an effort to keep the state competitive in the clean energy sector.
“One thing we really tried to lean on as an administration is climate, and using the challenge that the climate creates as an opportunity here in Massachusetts for us to drive innovation, to drive jobs, to drive careers and to drive investment,” Healey said inside the Triton Anchor lobby. “Not only did we appoint the country’s first climate chief, we also have put big, big, big money and investments into climate technology.”
Healey and members of her administration came to Triton Anchor because of its development of floating offshore wind and marine renewable energy platforms. Among the technologies they develop are anchors that can support offshore wind turbines while creating less of an impact to the environment immediately surrounding them.
Massachusetts Clean Energy Center CEO Emily Reichert said to the crowd of Triton Anchor employees that having climate tech companies like theirs in Massachusetts is a “big, big deal.”
“We have a huge opportunity in Massachusetts to ensure that
these companies, innovators like Triton, have the opportunity to stay and grow here,” said Reichert.
The Mass Leads Act, Reichert said, is intended to help climate tech companies like Triton Anchor “go from the startup phase to the scaleup phase.” She said the climate tech portion of the bill is essentially split into three parts: capital funding to support research and development of climate tech, tax incentives to attract climate tech companies to the state, and operating funding to support Masscec’s work in fostering the climate tech industry in the state.
Triton Anchor Managing Member David Model said their offshore wind turbine anchors are meant to solve a problem posed by the existing models of offshore turbines, where they seem to have negative impacts on the surrounding marine life.
“The current style is what they call percussion drilling … . Obviously the marine life does not enjoy that in a 100plus turbine installation,” said Model.
Chelmsford Town Manager
Paul Cohen said Triton Anchor has been “a valuable anchor to the community.”
“[Model] has really been a steadfast supporter for our Route 129 economic development corridor. We are so excited and blessed that you located your new facility in our community,” said Cohen.
Healey’s visit in Chelmsford was preceded by a stop with U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan for a ribbon cutting at Electric Hydrogen’s new gigafactory in Devens. In a statement after both visits, Healey said “Massachusetts is set to be a global leader in climate tech.”
“Both of these innovative and cutting-edge companies are excellent examples of how we lead and what the climate tech industry means to our state,” said Healey. “We believe in the mission of protecting our planet and our communities through innovative solutions, and we also believe in the opportunity this moment represents, to create great careers and drive our economy for generations to come. Our Mass Leads Act will support innovative companies like Triton and Electric Hydrogen and make Massachusetts the climate innovation hub for the world.”