The Atlantic coast’s first floating offshore wind lease sale within the Gulf of Maine resulted in two provisional winners and $21.9 million in profitable bids, with 4 lease areas awarded.
The primary Atlantic floating offshore wind lease sale
The Biden-Harris administration introduced that Avangrid Renewables and Invenergy NE Offshore Wind emerged because the winners after one spherical of bidding. Avangrid secured two leases for a complete of $11.17 million – these areas embody almost 223,500 acres and are positioned round 29.5 nautical miles off the coast of Massachusetts. They’ll doubtlessly ship round 3 gigawatts (GW) of fresh vitality to the New England area.
Invenergy additionally obtained two lease areas, totaling simply over 215,600 acres, with profitable bids amounting to $10.78 million. One space is about 46 nautical miles from Maine, whereas the opposite is 21.6 nautical miles from Massachusetts. Collectively, these areas have the potential to provide renewable vitality to greater than 2.3 million houses.
Avangrid’s portfolio on the East Coast has now expanded considerably, with over 5 GW of offshore wind capability deliberate – sufficient to energy greater than 2 million households. The corporate is concerned in initiatives corresponding to Winery Wind 1, New England Wind 1 and a pair of, and Kitty Hawk Wind South. With these new leases, Avangrid now holds the biggest offshore wind improvement portfolio within the Northeast area.
As for getting these floating wind generators out within the Atlantic, Avangrid asserts that it’s positioned to leverage the worldwide experience of its father or mother firm, Iberdrola, which is pioneering floating offshore wind in Europe.
The Gulf of Maine wind lease sale is a part of the Biden-Harris administration’s initiative to deploy 30 GW of offshore wind vitality capability by 2030 and 15 GW of floating offshore wind by 2035. Since taking workplace, the administration has authorised 10 business offshore wind initiatives – ranging from zero – that collectively might energy greater than 5 million houses. It has additionally performed six offshore wind lease auctions, together with the first-ever for the Pacific and Gulf Coasts.
Liz Burdock, CEO of Oceantic Community, acknowledged: “In the present day’s profitable public sale demonstrates that offshore wind will proceed to play a number one position within the Northeast’s vitality future. These lease areas will ship well-paying, native jobs, and drive vital funding in manufacturing amenities, ports, and transmission improvement. Regardless of the overall uncertainty across the upcoming presidential election, it is a vote of confidence for an American trade that has already acquired almost $3 billion of latest provide chain funding within the first 9 months of 2024.”
Electrek’s Take
In relation to the larger offshore wind image, Electrek reported final month that the worldwide wind turbine order consumption reached new highs within the first half of 2024, with 91.2 GW of exercise, a 23% improve year-over-year, due to the Asia-Pacific area, in accordance with evaluation from Wooden Mackenzie.
World onshore wind order consumption exercise elevated within the first half of 2024, however the offshore sector struggled, with order consumption reducing 38% year-over-year by way of the primary half (-4.1 GW), as difficult undertaking economics have curbed the market.
Luke Lewandowski, vice chairman, international renewables analysis at Wooden Mackenzie, famous that “the offshore market has nearly 30 GW of conditional orders globally, 21 GW of that are for initiatives in Europe and the US, however difficult economics proceed to delay conversion into agency orders.”
So in the present day’s public sale announcement is historic – placing floating offshore wind within the Gulf of Maine was solely an idea 4 years in the past. Nonetheless, solely 4 of the eight areas attracted excessive bids, which isn’t stunning contemplating the present challenges going through US offshore wind and the tight election, with one candidate threatening to undermine the trade.
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