New Jersey is the third state to recently announce intentions for offshore wind generation, following New York and Connecticut.
Governor Phil Murphy stated that the state will start building 3,500 MW of offshore wind by 2030, providing enough energy to power over a million households. This is part of the vast American offshore wind sector that is just now developing. In order to start the process of advancing the state toward achieving its goal, Murphy has signed an Executive Order instructing the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to fully execute the Offshore Wind Economic Development Act.
Murphy sees offshore wind as “a vital step” in helping the Garden State meet its renewable energy targets and wants to make New Jersey “a leader” in the industry. Murphy has instructed the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to create an offshore wind strategic plan that focuses on increasing employment, fostering workforce development, gathering data, and safeguarding offshore natural resources in order to achieve this goal.
Governor Christie approved OWEDA in 2010. It is a piece of law that gives state authorities the power to design a scheme for Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Credits. Offshore wind developers have not received the requisite permissions from the New Jersey BPU to proceed, and there are still gaps in the rules for executing the OREC program. The BPU is instructed by Governor Murphy’s Executive Order to start the rulemaking procedure in order to fix these regulatory loopholes.
The Executive Order also instructs Catherine McCabe, commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and Joseph Fiordaliso, president of the BPU, to collaborate on developing an offshore wind strategic plan for New Jersey. This will concentrate on crucial elements of offshore wind development, such as employment creation, personnel development, data gathering, and proper facility decision, as well as assuring the protection of natural resources.
“We are grateful to governors Phil Murphy of New Jersey, Andrew Cuomo of New York, and Dannel Malloy of Connecticut for recognizing the enormous potential for clean energy off their shores and acting to make it a reality as soon as possible,” said Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association.
New York and Connecticut have made pledges, and now New Jersey has done the same. According to REM’s article from last week, the state of New York has unveiled a new offshore wind master plan that aims to develop 2,400 MW worth of offshore wind farms by 2030.
In 2016, Statoil was awarded the first offshore wind lease in New York. This will make it possible to build Empire Wind, a 600 MW offshore wind farm located 20 miles south of Long Island. Once the firm finds a client for the wind farm’s energy output, construction may start in 2023.
A request for proposals (RFP) has been made by Connecticut for the development of sustainable energy, including 220 MW of offshore wind along with projects for anaerobic digestion and hydrogen fuel cells.
According to Riccardo Toto, CEO and President of US Wind, expanding the US market would support the development of a stronger American supply chain and further reduce customer prices. Offshore wind leases off Maryland and New Jersey are now held by US Wind.
According to a recent study co-authored by New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and the Clean Energy States Alliance, 8 GW of offshore wind power from Maryland to Maine will support nearly 40,000 full-time jobs in the United States by 2028, compared to the Department of Energy’s forecast of 160,000 jobs supported by 86 GW by 2050.
“The visible market for offshore wind in America is already more than half the total worldwide installed capacity, including all the governmental commitments made so far,” claims Stephanie McClellan, director of the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind at the University of Delaware.
The Trump Administration released draft guidelines for a “design envelope” approach in January as an indication of support for offshore wind. This enables developers to move the regulatory process forward faster while delaying some commercial choices, such the choice of wind turbines. Before completing these recommendations, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is looking for feedback from the sector.
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke stated, “The offshore wind potential of the Outer Continental Shelf is a fantastic asset and part of the administration’s America-First Energy Plan to make it simpler for companies to do business here.” More than ever, we need to make use of all the tools at our disposal to guarantee an energy-secure future that fosters employment growth and is also cheap, competitive, and safe. In the future, offshore wind will have a significant impact.