VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) Virginia is in the race to be a leader in offshore wind energy in the United States. Dominion Energy has plans for an $8-billion offshore wind project in the next few years.<\/p>\n
We are going to the coast of Virginias offshore wind pilot project, said Dominion Energy Project Manager Lloyd Eley.<\/p>\n
Thursday morning, engineers and scientists from Dominion and Old Dominion University boarded a boat at the Virginia Aquarium to head 27 miles off the coast.<\/p>\n
Its a perfect day to go out, Eley added.<\/p>\n
Dominion Energy teamed up with Old Dominion to build and study two offshore wind turbines.<\/p>\n
Old Dominion University is a maritime university, said ODU Executive Director of Programs and Partnerships Paul Olsen. We are very focused on maritime skills and maritime education.<\/p>\n
Dominion built the 600-foot-high turbines and ODU is looking at the data. The goal is to have another source of future energy.<\/p>\n
Hampton Roads is really relying on one or two initial sources of energy both nuclear and fossil fuels, Olsen added. Offshore wind along with solar will diversify our energy portfolio.<\/p>\n
Soon, 200 more wind turbines will join the two. Dominion will start construction in 2024 and they should be operational two years later.<\/p>\n
Its a very exciting moment, Eley said. I know the team has worked really hard with construction and managing of the logistics, the schedule and the budget especially in the midst of a pandemic. We are able to collect lessons learned for both the permitting side as well as the engineering, design and construction.<\/p>\n
ODU just won a $775,000 grant from the Department of Defense to continue the development and implementation of offshore wind technology.<\/p>\n
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10 On Your Side gets first look at offshore wind turbines - WAVY.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) Virginia is in the race to be a leader in offshore wind energy in the United States. Continue reading