PROVIDENCE – R.I. Commerce Corp. is hoping to capitalize on the emerging offshore wind industry with a new position dedicated to luring companies to the state and helping existing businesses get in on the action.
William Cotta was hired as the agency’s offshore wind supply-chain director in December, he told Providence Business News on Monday. Although the state’s economic-development arm has made offshore wind part of its business-development priorities previously, this is the first position solely dedicated to the industry, according to Hilary Fagan, R.I. Commerce’s executive vice president of business development.
Cotta is joining R.I. Commerce just as President Biden’s administration is seeking to advance several major offshore wind farms which were previously subject to delays in federal permitting. Although the Revolution Wind project slated for waters off the coast of Rhode Island still does not have an updated completion date or timeline for its federal review process, the state still has much to gain from the other projects ramping up along the East Coast, Fagan said.
Cotta will lend his expertise and experience in technical aspects of wind farm construction and maintenance to help existing Rhode Island companies prepare for and win contracts related to these major wind farms. He will also work with wind-project developers to identify existing gaps in the state’s offshore wind industry and lure companies to the Ocean State to fill those needs for future projects.
Cotta is a Pawtucket native who served nine years as a naval architect for the U.S. Coast Guard, followed by time in the private sector as deputy director of data analytics for the Seabed Systems Group of ThayerMahan Inc., a maritime surveillance company based on Groton, Conn.
Fagan called Cotta a “great fit” for the position due to his technical expertise.
“He really speaks the language of marine engineering,” she said.
While Cotta has spent his initial few months on a “listening tour” talking to existing businesses and offshore wind developers, he has also begun discussions with several outside companies with wind energy expertise looking to locate local offices, although R.I. Commerce could not provide further details.
Cotta will earn an annual salary of $116,000, according to Commerce spokesman Brian Hodge.
Nancy Lavin is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Lavin@PBN.com.
