Category Archives: Offshore

The Rampion 2 team has launched a four-week informal consultation this week to raise awareness and seek feedback on their initial proposals to expand the Rampion wind farm off the Sussex coast, UK.

A full and formal consultation will follow later in the year, ahead of the submission of a development consent application to build the Rampion 2 wind farm.

Depending on the final scheme, Rampion 2 could power over one million homes in the UK and reduce carbon emissions by around 1.8 million tonnes per year, in addition to Rampions existing generation.

In autumn last year, it was announced that an offshore Area of Search was being assessed for a maximum of up to 116 turbines, the same number as the existing Rampion offshore wind farm.

The results of technical and environmental surveys and stakeholder feedback will be used to identify the optimum site for the new wind farm, which will be located somewhere within this area.

A subsea export cable is proposed to bring the power ashore under Climping beach, with an underground onshore cable route required to bring the power inland to connect to the national transmission grid at Bolney, where three potential sites are being considered for a new substation.

For the past 18 months, we have undertaken a series of desktop studies and site surveys to establish the physical lay of the land. We have also been talking with many local authorities, MPs, parish councils and experts on wildlife, environment, transport, geology, archaeology, business and fishing, said Chris Tomlinson, Development & Stakeholder Manager, Rampion 2.

We will use the results of our investigations and stakeholder engagement to identify the best possible sites for the onshore and offshore project elements, while minimising disturbance to the local community and environment in delivering this vital green energy project. At this early stage, we would very much welcome feedback from the Sussex community so that we are aware of all local issues, concerns and constraints as we prepare more detailed proposals for a formal public consultation later this year.

A virtual village hall exhibition experience has gone live for people to find out more and to share their views and any local information they think may be important for the project design. Online visitors can tour the exhibition to study maps and charts, watch a video flying over the onshore cable route options, find out how the operating Rampion Wind Farm was built, or arrange a virtual meeting with members of the Project Team to ask more detailed questions.

Formal public consultation on detailed proposals will take place in mid-2021 prior to further refinements of final proposals which will form the basis of the Rampion 2 development consent application, planned to be submitted late in 2021.

If consent is awarded, construction would begin 2025/26 at the earliest with a view to having a completed, operational project before the end of the decade.

Rampion 2 is being developed by RWE on behalf of a joint venture company including a Macquarie-led consortium, and Canadas energy infrastructure company Enbridge, together with owners of the existing Rampion offshore wind farm.

The project has signed an Agreement for Lease with The Crown Estate, the UK seabed manager, securing an option to develop on the site.

See more here:

Rampion 2 Team Starts Informal Consultation - Offshore WIND

In brief

Deltec, the Bahamas-based bank that holds reserves for stablecoin issuer Tether, stated today that it has a large position in Bitcoin.

Chief Investment Officer Hugo Rogers, in a 2020 review video, said of Deltecs holdings:

It also includes a large position in bitcoin, which has received a lot of attention recently. We bought bitcoin for our clients at about $9,300, so that worked very well through 2020. And we expect it to work well in 2021 as the liquidity crisis continues to run hot."

Tether is perhaps Deltecs most famous client. According to market data provider CoinMarketCap, Tether has a circulating supply of 24.3 billion USDT. Since the stablecoin issuer claims each USDT is fully backed by our reserves and each USDT is pegged to the dollar, that means it should have assets worth $24.3 billion in the bank. According to Tethers website, its reserves include traditional currency and cash equivalents and, from time to time, may include other assets and receivables from loans made by Tether to third parties.

So, the question is: Is Tether backed, in part, by Bitcoin? If so, a crash in the price of Bitcoin could reduce investors ability to remove funds.

And the answer is...unclear.

Tethers last published transparency update, from June 1, 2018, claims a total of $2.54 billion in USD distributed across two bank accounts. That amount was more than its reported market cap at the time.

A letter produced by Tether from Deltec, dated November 1, 2018, seemingly confirmed that Tether was a client, though it used creative wording to discuss how many dollars were in the account: We hereby confirm that, at the close of business on October 31, 2018, the portfolio cash value of your account with our bank was US$1,831,322,828. (Emphasis ours.)

Moreover, Deltec hasnt divulged which clients its holding Bitcoin for, as Tether isnt Deltecs only customer. In fact, at least one other crypto company seems to use it as well, crypto derivatives exchange FTX.

So, this could all be much ado about nothing, smoke without fire.

But others find it curious, especially as crypto exchange Bitfinex, which shares a leadership team with Tether, has been rumored to own a large stake in Deltec.

Tether isnt just the subject of rumors. Its also the subject of a New York Attorney Generals Office investigation. The NYAG has been looking into whether Bitfinex gave Tether loans to hide $1 billion in losses.

None of this has stopped Tethers forward progress. It is the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and remains the most-used stablecoin.

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Tethers Offshore Bank Discloses Large Position in Bitcoin - Decrypt

Elia Group is set to launch its fifth Open Innovation Challenge which will focus on innovative solutions for offshore wind applications.

Elia Group comprises two transmission system operators, Elia in Belgium and 50Hertz in northeast Germany.

The Open Innovation Challenge aims to connect the industry to the wider ecosystem of startups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in an effort to drive innovation and accelerate towards a common objective: a successful energy transition that contributes to a carbon-neutral society, Elia Group said.

Given the huge volume of electricity demand that needs to be covered by renewables, Europe will have to harvest its wind potential further offshore.

Consequently, offshore grid operation is entering a new phase of development, with all the challenges and opportunities for innovation that brings.

The group is looking for innovative solutions in four categories: Sustainability finding ways to reduce the impact of the offshore installations and operations on ecosystems; Remote operations and maintenance ways to decrease physical access and enhance the safety of operations; Grid integration tackling challenges that come with offshore and onshore grid integration and expansion; and Thinking outside the box other technologies that could generate any other common benefit.

The competition is open to startups from around the world. Five finalists will present their proposals at the grand finale in Berlin on 17 June 2021. The winner of the challenge will receive EUR 20,000, mentoring, and the chance to roll out their project within Elia Group.

Excerpt from:

Elia Group to Launch Open Innovation Challenge with Offshore Wind in Focus - Offshore WIND

Much has been written about the precarious state of permafrost in the Arctic, but a new interactive scientific paper maps out the extent of permafrost both on the land and under the water.

Evolving out of the expertise at the Aurora Research Institute and Inuvialuit Innovation, Science and Climate Change, and funded by the United Nations Environmental Programme, the Coastal and Offshore Permafrost Rapid Response Study mapped out differences between parts of the Arctic, identifies knowledge gaps in current understanding of permafrost systems and makes numerous recommendations to help fill them.

Its a community of people who have come together to do this assessment, said Scott Dallimore of the Geological Survey of Canada. It was meant to be a circumarctic-type assessment. We considered the entire Beaufort coast, Alaska, Yukon, NWT and all aspects of Siberia. A lot of the lead researchers that were involved were Canadian and had worked in Inuvik, and all of us were basically out of the Aurora Research Institute.

Youll find a lot of the videos on the website are also Inuvialuit videos. Were using material that already existed and putting it front and centre on the website.

Dallimore explained that the western Arctic that includes the Beaufort Delta is unique in the fact there was little to no glaciation in the area during the last ice age, allowing average temperatures of -30C or lower to freeze the ground into permafrost. As the glaciers receded back into the mountains, ocean levels rose, covering much of the permafrost underwater where it remains today.

However, much like the permafrost on the land the submerged permafrost is being thawed out by warmer temperatures, though because most of the focus has been on surface permafrost scientists are still working out the extent and rate of deterioration.

Most people who live in the communities in the North dont realize the thickest permafrost accumulations in Canada are actually in the offshore, said Dallimore, who noted permafrost can be found as deep as 750 metres underground. You see all these stories about coastal erosion but really its the study and examination of how the coast and the offshore are responding together.

Its not just the erosion of Tuktoyaktuk, its the landscape behind Tuk, and the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk-Highway and the vegetation response and the lakes and what theyre doing, and also the near-shore environment where you had sea level rising and the coast has migrated 120 kilometres inland from where it used to be. Theres this fascinating environment which is really understudied and thats what were trying to draw attention to.

Also part of the interactive paper is a crowdsource map that readers can add their own observations of climate change and how it is affecting the landscape. Dallimore said having the map would help people direct the researchers where to look.

Most of the recommendations revolve around where to take research next, but also to expand the regional capacity for science and engineering by establishing more coastal science projects and increasing investment for education of youth in the Delta to help Gwichin and Inuvialuit become more involved in scientific research.

Read the entire report here. The crowdsource map can be accessed here.

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New interactive website maps relationships between coastal and offshore permafrost - NNSL Media

Fishermen say that Maine Gov. Janet Mills plan for a state-led offshore wind project is being rushed. And now news that a developer is considering a new commercial-scale wind project off the coast is adding to their fears.

In late November, the Mills administration announced that the state would seek a federal lease for up to 12 floating wind turbines off southern Maine that could produce enough energy for more than 70,000 homes.

We think theres a real opportunity for Maine to be a leader in the country on floating offshore wind, says Dan Burgess, who leads the governors energy office.

Burgess says the research array project, as state officials call it, would be led by the state and the University of Maine, and developed by affiliates of international industry heavyweights Mitsubishi Electric and RWE Renewables.

Project backers see it as a vital step in the effort to seed a fast-growth industry here while also helping to meet state goals for reduced reliance on fossil fuels.

Were taking this approach so Maine can be in the drivers seat when it comes to potential development in the Gulf of Maine, Burgess says.

But if Gov. Mills wants to be in the drivers seat, fishermen say she should take her foot off the gas, and step on the brakes.

All of a sudden why the rush? I dont get it. Because this is a big deal and this isnt something that you rush through, says Gerry Cushman, a lobsterman out of Port Clyde who attended the first of four initial stakeholder webinars the state held in December.

That was just three weeks after announcing that this winter the state would select a specific site 20-40 miles off the coast, and by early spring would submit an application for a 20-year lease to the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Cushman argued that even in the best of times its difficult to convene fishermen, who tend to be on the water dawn-to-dusk and longer. He says thats compounded now by the pandemic and overreliance on virtual public meetings.

I just dont think you can do an adequate job by this spring in doing an outreach, in getting the information that you really need, and I think its really point blank unfair," he says. "I think its unfair to the fishing industry that youre pushing it this fast when you got this for 20 years, and weve been fishing there for hundreds of years."

He and other fishermen say the untested technology poses numerous potential threats: Hazards to navigation and gear from electric cables on the seafloor and mooring lines in the water column; behavior changes among lobster or fish; the possibility that the 16-square-mile site might even be put off limits to fishing entirely.

Stephen Russell, who fishes in potential turbine territory, says he's concerned about birds and other wildlife.

The gannets are going to take it hard," he says. "Seagulls, geese, we can see a cloud of monarch butterflies go by. Does this not play into the decision to put something in such a location anywhere out there? Its a very highly used flyway."

Project officials say those kinds of questions are precisely the type that the research array could explore.

Anxieties about Big Wind moving in are being heightened by recent rumors that a commercial developer is considering an even larger-scale wind project in state waters. Energy office director Burgess confirmed hes been contacted by the company, called Trident Winds.

Theres no formal project submitted to the state. I think its fair to say we have strong concerns about commercial-scale development in state waters and our priority is really this research array and moving this forward, he says.

Trident Winds, which has formally proposed an offshore wind project in Californias Morro Bay, did not respond to requests for comment. And Burgess declined further comment about the contact.

But he says interest from a commercial developer, however substantial or transitory, is a case in point. To protect both fishermen and economic opportunity, he says, Maine needs to establish and maintain a leadership position in the technologys emergence.

We think it can be done in partnership with the fishing industry in Maine as well as other interested parties to really form a science-based understanding of how best to design and implement offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine, Burgess says.

Meanwhile, the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump appears to have improved the fishing communitys position in the wind project permitting process. Two weeks ago, an attorney in the Department of the Interior wrote an opinion that offshore projects in federal waters must not unreasonably interfere with fishing operations, and that fishermens perspectives are part of what determine whether interference is unreasonable.

Annie Hawkins, executive director of a fishing-industry trade group called the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, says that could considerably strengthen fishermens hand.

Its certainly much stronger than it was. And I think a pure reading of the memo would say that fishermen have priority, she says, and that would put fishing operations in a really protected spot.

Hawkins says its unknown whether the Biden administration will enforce that opinion. Burgess says the administration is studying the opinions potential ramifications. He adds that the next step in determining a lease site for a research array off Maine, a scoping session, will take place this month, although it has yet to be scheduled.

This story first published on Maine Public Radio.

Continue reading here:

Maine Wants To Lead In Offshore Wind, But Fishermen Say State Is Moving Too Fast - WBUR

Crowley Shipping has formed a New Energy division strategically focused on diverse services supporting the emerging energy sectors in the U.S. and adjacent regions concentrating inoffshore wind and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

At Crowley, we have a strong company culture of environmental stewardship and sustainability in not only our own operations, but in our services to customers, said Chairman and CEO Tom Crowley. The New Energy division captures our commitment to those cultural principles while delivering the innovative solutions that help customers in these emerging sectors succeed.

Matt Yacavone, senior vice president and general manager, Crowley Shipping, described the New Energy division as the "next evolution in our prioritization of this market with a singular focus on developing and delivering access and support to more sustainable energy sources to our customers.

Crowley has provided LNG distribution services since 2013, when it acquired Carib Energy LLC, the first company to receive a small-scale LNG export license from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for LNG transportation from the U.S. into Free Trade Agreement (FTA) countries.

Since that time, Crowley has expanded its LNG services to include not only sourcing and distribution services for industrial and commercial customers, but also microgrid solutions, engineering services and vessel fuel bunkering services. This expertise includes fueling of its own LNG-powered combination container/roll-on roll-off (ConRo) vessels, which operate weekly in the U.S. mainland-to-Puerto Rico liner cargo trade.

Offshore wind poweris emerging in the U.S. The company said it expects its expansion in the offshore wind industry to be as a total lifecycle service provider, with tailored solutions in support of the entire project. The solutions include: transportation of turbines during construction designs for industry-specific support vessels shoreside terminaling supply chain services from farm construction through decommissioning.

Crowley takes the one-source concept to the next level as a lifecycle service provider, said Jeff Andreini, vice president, New Energy division. We have engineered solutions to assist our industry partners in the installation of their wind farms, and once the project is complete, wind power companies can continue to turn to Crowley for operations and maintenance as well as help managing the terminal and vessel activity.

Wind power companies entering the U.S. market have big needsinfrastructure and supply chain just for starters, Andreini continued. Because of the newness of the American market, its hard for companies to know what they dont know or will need. Facing this uncertainty, Crowley provides a turnkey supply chain solution for piecing these massive projects together.

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Crowley Holdings Inc. is the parent company of Crowley Maritime Corp., a privately-held company that provides worldwide logistics, government, marine and energy solutions.

Crowley operates four business units: Crowley Logistics, a supply chain management division that includes logistics and ocean liner cargo transportation services; Crowley Shipping, which encompasses ownership, operations and management of conventional and dual fuel (LNG) vessels, including tankers, container ships, multipurpose tugboats and barges; sustainable energy solutions for the emerging offshore wind and liquefied natural gas (LNG) sectors; engineering; project management; naval architecture and vessel construction management; Crowley Fuels, a fuel transportation, distribution and sales division in Alaska; and Crowley Solutions, which focuses on global government services and program management including, ship management, expeditionary logistics, technology solutions, energy solutions and freight transportation and logistics services.

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Crowley forms new division with focus on offshore wind - WorkBoat

New guidance from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS, the Service) extends the Continuity Safe Harbor to 10 years for both offshore wind projects and projects on federal land.

As background, eligibility for the production tax credit (PTC) under Section 45 and the investment tax credit (ITC) under Section 48 ties to the date when a project begins construction. There is extensive existing guidance from the Service regarding when a project is treated as having begun construction. Broadly speaking, a project is treated as having begun construction when it meets either the Physical Work Test (performing physical work of a significant nature) or the Five Percent Safe Harbor (spending 5% of the total cost of the project). In addition, the taxpayer must satisfy certain continuity requirements with respect to the project. The Service has provided a Continuity Safe Harbor, whereby a project is treated as satisfying the continuity requirements if it is placed in service by the end of the year that is four years after the year when the Physical Work Test or Five Percent Safe Harbor is met. The Continuity Safe Harbor had previously been extended to five years for projects that met the Physical Work Test or Five Percent Safe Harbor in 2016 or 2017.

At the end of 2020, the new stimulus bill was passed into law, and it included several provisions relating to the PTC and ITC. Read our summary of the new law here. The law also provided a standalone ITC for offshore wind projects. The offshore wind ITC is 30% for any projects where construction begins before 2026 and is not subject to any phase down. Qualified facilities are those located in the inland navigable waters of the United States or in the coastal waters of the United States. The existing Service guidance should apply for determining when an offshore wind facility is treated as having begun construction.

On Monday, the Service issued Notice 2021-05 (the Notice). The Notice provides that for Offshore Projects or Federal Land Projects, the Continuity Safe Harbor is extended to 10 years. That is, a project will be treated as having begun construction in the year when it first meets the Physical Work Test or Five Percent Safe Harbor, so long as the project is placed in service by the end of the year that is 10 years after the year when the Physical Work Test or Five Percent Safe Harbor is met. Offshore Project means a qualified facility in inland navigable waters of the United States or any coastal waters of the United States (i.e., those projects that are eligible under the new offshore wind ITC), which will require the construction of one or more high-voltage transmission lines to connect to the grid. Federal Land Project means a project more than 50% of which will be placed in service on land owned or controlled by the United States, as determined by relative value or relative area, which will require the construction of one or more high-voltage transmission lines to connect to the grid.

The Service indicated that the Notice relief was provided because it was aware of certain qualified facilities and energy property that are begin constructed Offshore or on Federal Land, and based on comments from Congress and project stakeholders, it determined that these projects ordinarily are subject to significantly greater delays than other projects, and are at higher risk of failing the Continuity Safe Harbor. The Service noted that these delays may otherwise fall within the list of excusable disruptions under the existing guidance, for purposes of determining if the projects otherwise meet the facts and circumstances continuity requirement (i.e., if the project does not satisfy the Continuity Safe Harbor).

The relief applies to offshore wind projects (which are newly eligible for a standalone ITC), as well as any ITC or PTC projects on federal land (e.g., solar, fuel cell, onshore wind, etc.). However, under the ITC statute in Section 48, ITC projects other than offshore wind are generally subject to placed in service deadlines. The Notice does not change those deadlines. For example, a solar ITC Federal Land Project that began construction in 2019 must still be placed in service by the end of 2025 to qualify for the full 30% ITC. If it is placed in service in 2026 (even though still within the 10-year Continuity Safe Harbor), it is presumably only eligible for 10% ITC under the statute. Neither the PTC nor the new offshore wind ITC is subject to a placed in service cliff, and thus these projects have more potential to benefit from the Notice. For example, an offshore wind project that begins construction in 2025 may be placed in service as late as 2035 and still be eligible for the new 30% offshore ITC.

The relatively quick release of the Notice following enactment of the offshore wind ITC last week suggests strong support for these projects by Congress, the US Department of the Treasury and Service. For instance, the offshore wind ITC remains in place, at a full 30%, through the end of 2025, while the PTC and ITC applicable to all other renewable technologies (e.g., solar, fuel cell, onshore wind, etc.) are already subject to phase down, and in the case of onshore wind, disappear for projects that start construction after 2021.

The Notice confirms that it clarifies and modifies all existing begin construction guidance for both the PTC and ITC.

[View source.]

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IRS Provides Relief for Offshore Wind and Federal Land Projects - JD Supra

Robots arent going to take over the world, but they can definitely make life a lot easier for humans. And that was the aim of BladeBUG, a UK startup that has developed insect-like robots to inspect, maintain, and repair offshore wind turbine blades without the need for rope access.

BladeBUGs founder and CEO, Chris Cieslak, has a background in wind turbine blade design. His company spotted a gap in the market: How will the offshore wind industry maintain and repair the giant turbine blades once theyre swooshing through the air, high above the water, without requiring wind turbine workers to dangle precariously above the sea? (Whos going to want to hang off the giant 14 MW Haliade-X Dogger Bank turbine blades? Yikes.) Not only does the robot make it safer for rope access technicians; it also saves money for the wind turbine companies, as its expensive to have humans climb out onto turbine blades.

So the now seven-person, London-based startup invented BladeBUG, a six-legged robot with suction cups on its feet that can change shape as it crawls along wind turbine blades. The robot has cameras so the operator can see whats going on, and its steered by a gaming controller from the top of the turbine. It uses sensors to find damage or anything hindering the wind turbiness efficiency.It can even make small repairs.

And for an extra dose of cool, drones can carry the BladeBUG robots to the offshore wind farms.

The young company was funded by the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, a UK government industrial innovation program. As a result, BladeBUG was able to form a partnership with theOffshore Renewable Energy Catapult,the UKs leading technology innovation center foroffshore wind, wave, and tidalenergy.

In October 2020, the BladeBUG robot successfully walked on an offshore wind turbine in Scotland (pictured above left).The BladeBUG will undergo commercial trials in 2021 and is expected to go to market in 2022. Heres a short video about these little robots that are set to play a big part in offshore wind growth:

Photo: BladeBug

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This bug robot will inspect and repair offshore wind turbine blades - Electrek.co

US offshore wind developer Mayflower Wind said that the price of electricity generated at its 804 MW wind farm offshore Massachusetts is on track to go down by around 10 per cent.

This is due to the recently increased and extended federal Offshore Wind Energy Investment Tax Credit, the developer said.

Mayflower Wind, a 50/50 joint venture between Shell New Energies and Ocean Winds, was selected as the winner in the second offshore wind solicitation in Massachusetts.

In the selected Low Cost Energy bid, the developer had committed to passing any federal tax credits to customers.

Due to the change in federal law and Mayflowers promise to rebate this value of federal tax credits written into the contracts with National Grid, Eversource, and Unitil, the projects electricity price of USD 77.76 per megawatt-hour should go down to USD 70.26 per megawatt-hour.

This price reduction likely means that the customers of the three Massachusetts electric utilities can expect to save over USD 25 million each year, resulting in USD 500 million lower electric bills over the life of the 20-year contracts due to recent changes in federal law, Mayflower Wind said.

Mayflower Winds contracts to provide wind energy have been approved by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, however, that approval is currently on hold pending consideration of a motion filed by the Attorney Generals Office to reconsider the compensation of the utilities.

Mayflower Wind creates environmental and economic value, Mayflower Wind CEO, Michael Brown, said.

We are proud of this consumer savings provision of our bid. The work we have done to embrace the federal tax credit program is putting us a trajectory to lower our price and increase our value to customers. We look forward to speedy resolution of the Attorney Generals pending motion and concluding the process of locking in this benefit to the customers.

The Mayflower Wind project is located over 30 miles south of Marthas Vineyard and 20 miles south of Nantucket. The wind farm is expected to start generating power in the mid-2020s.

Excerpt from:

Mayflower Wind Electricity Users Stand to Save USD 500 Million - Offshore WIND

The U.S. offshore wind industry appears poised at a brink of optimism it first saw a decade ago, when Obama administration officials talked of wind power assuming coals then-dominant role in the nations electric grid.

That moment was dashed when the Cape Wind proposal off Massachusetts was hounded away by its Cape Cod opponents, and the Obama offshore energy plans derailed by the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster.

Now with the Biden administration looking to renewable energy as a cornerstone of economic recovery, offshore winds time could be here again. And just before leaving for the holidays, Congress took a step to push for employing more U.S. mariners in the industry.

The annual National Defense Authorization Act approved by Congress in its first override of a presidential veto by Donald Trump included a provision explicitly requiring that all U.S. laws including the Jones Act apply to renewable energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf.

By eliminating uncertainty over this issue, Congress will help unleash robust investment and job creation in the American maritime industry tied to clean offshore energy development, the American Maritime Partnership said in celebrating the final vote on New Years Day.

The bipartisan push to ensure wind developers comply with the Jones Act and Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of 1953 came after months of dueling among lobbyists from wind and offshore services industries.

Wind power advocates warned a looming worldwide shortage of wind turbine installation vessels would hobble development of U.S. projects for years, before Jones Act-compliant WTIVs can be built.

The offshore industry countered that U.S. companies with their experience and expertise can keep the work rolling during that time without need for Jones Act waivers.

That outcome could be a win for both the U.S. maritime and commercial fishing industries. The Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, a coalition of fishermen and ports on the East and West coasts, hopes holding wind developers to Jones Act requirements could slow the pace of development and allow more breathing room for better planning by the Bureau of Offshore Energy Management, including more involvement by fishermen to reduce future conflicts.

The Biden administration will first have to deal with the Vineyard Wind project off southern New England, where the Trump administration in its final weeks attempted to pull the plug on permitting the 800-megawatt turbine array.

It was a last bit of drama in the Trump administrations schizophrenia over offshore wind. While Donald Trump ridiculed wind power at his public rallies, his own Department of Interior busily worked at approving offshore wind energy leases off the East Coast and mapping out new areas in the Pacific.

In fact the federal governments appetite for offshore energy leasing has persisted for decades, no matter whether a Republican or Democratic president occupies the White House.

An incoming Biden administration will likely do all it can to ease the path for offshore wind energy developers in the Northeast states, where like-minded state governments have grand aspirations for moving their energy sources over the horizon.

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Biden should provide a boost to offshore wind - WorkBoat