The Interior Department on Tuesday approved a plan to install up to 176 giant wind turbines off the coast of Virginia, paving the way for the country’s largest offshore wind farm to date.
The Coastal Virginia offshore wind project, to be built by Dominion Energy, is the fifth commercial-scale offshore wind project approved by the Biden administration. If completed, the 2.6 gigawatt wind farm would produce enough electricity to power more than 900,000 homes without producing the carbon dioxide emissions that are heating the planet.
The decision comes at a dangerous time for the offshore wind industry. To combat climate change, the Biden administration wants to install 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power in the United States by 2030. However, this plan has recently run into serious problems as developers have struggled with rising coastlines, rising interest rates, supply chain delays, etc. and outbreaks of local opposition.
While dozens of offshore wind farms are planned along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, construction of all of these projects is not guaranteed. In Massachusetts, the company behind the Commonwealth Wind project canceled its contracts with state utilities this year, citing unexpected inflation and saying it planned to bid at higher prices. In New York, developers of four planned offshore wind farms recently asked the state for more money before moving forward. New York rejected that request and it is unclear whether the projects will move forward.
Analysts at BloombergNEF now expect just 16.4 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity to be completed by 2030, about half of the Biden administration’s goal.
But even amid the turmoil, some projects are making slow progress. Construction is underway off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts at Vineyard Wind, where 62 wind turbines are expected to be installed this year. In New Jersey, where the Ocean Wind project is facing protests from Jersey Shore residents, the developer recently posted a $100 million bond to guarantee the wind farm will be completed by 2025.
And in Virginia, Dominion Energy recently welcomed the arrival of eight massive steel foundation piles from Germany in preparation for its $9.8 billion coastal wind project, which will be located about 27 miles off Virginia Beach. The construction work is scheduled to be completed by 2026.
“The delivery of the first foundations is further evidence that our Coastal Virginia offshore wind project continues to move forward on time and on budget to deliver reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy to our customers,” said Dominion CEO Robert Blue, current statement in a statement.
The Biden administration’s environmental review found that Virginia’s offshore wind project would help reduce local air pollution but also had the potential to disrupt local fishing areas, wetlands and whale migration routes. As part of the permitting process, Dominion agreed to relocate several turbines from known fishing havens and to compensate local fisheries for any losses.
Elsewhere, similar concerns have slowed offshore wind plans. Fishing groups and landowners have filed several lawsuits to stop the Vineyard Wind project in Massachusetts, arguing that the federal government did not properly study the wind farm’s potential impact on fisheries or the endangered North American right whale. (One of these lawsuits is funded by a Texas-based fossil fuel-promoting nonprofit.)
Elizabeth Klein, the director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which oversees reviews of offshore wind turbines, said her agency consulted with state and local leaders, tribes, ocean users, industry groups and others as part of its decision to give the green light Federal authorities advise the Virginia project.
“We look forward to continuing to work together to responsibly develop this clean energy resource and ensure a sustainable future for generations to come,” said Ms. Klein.