NE4OSW Applauds Next Step in Maine Offshore Wind Hub Development
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 20, 2024
Contact:
Jennifer Delony, New England for Offshore Wind
jdelony@ne4osw.org, 603.320.7043
NE4OSW Applauds Next Step in Maine Offshore Wind Hub Development
Gov. Janet Mills advances Sears Island as preferred floating wind port location
AUGUSTA, Maine – February 20, 2024 – New England for Offshore Wind (@NE4OSW) is thrilled that Gov. Janet Mills today took the next step in building a major offshore wind hub in Searsport, Maine, that will support clean energy growth for the state and add critical capacity to the offshore wind industry workforce and supply chain.
“A floating offshore wind port in Searsport would be the foundation needed to realize a robust offshore wind hub for the Atlantic Coast,” said Kelt Wilska, Offshore Wind Director, Environmental League of Massachusetts, and Regional Lead, New England for Offshore Wind. “Maine is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the economic potential of an offshore wind hub that could inform floating wind deployment for the U.S. and enable floating wind project opportunities along the Atlantic Coast.”
Mills recommended that the state use Maine Department of Transportation (DOT)-owned land on Sears Island as the location for the development of a deep-water offshore wind port.
Background
In November 2021, Maine DOT released an Offshore Wind Port Infrastructure Feasibility Study for building port facilities in the Searsport region to support the offshore wind industry on the Atlantic Coast.
The report identified an offshore wind port and additional locations for a larger offshore wind hub in Searsport to fulfill the needs of deep-water offshore wind projects in the Gulf of Maine once the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) completes its planned lease auction in 2024-2025. The Searsport hub could also ensure supply chain security that demonstrates the ability to support new deep-water Wind Energy Areas in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic and Southern Atlantic regions.
Maine DOT’s port infrastructure study determined that the Searsport Hub could serve locations outside of the Gulf of Maine if BOEM designates new lease areas in deep water along the Atlantic Coast.
The Atlantic Coast has 1.2 TW of deep-water offshore wind energy technical potential, which represents 43% of the total U.S. deep-water technical potential (NREL, Offshore Wind Energy Technical Potential for the Contiguous United States).
BOEM’s draft Wind Energy Area for leasing in deep waters of the Gulf of Maine has 40 GW of technical potential. And in December 2022, BOEM auctioned 5 deep-water offshore wind leases with 4.5 GW of technical potential off of California, a fraction of the West Coast’s 88 GW.
About New England for Offshore Wind
New England for Offshore Wind (www.NewEnglandforOffshoreWind.org) is a broad-based coalition of businesses and business associations, environmental and justice organizations, academic institutions, and labor unions committed to combatting climate change by increasing the supply of clean energy to our regional grid through more procurements of responsibly developed offshore wind. We believe that responsibly developed offshore wind is the single biggest lever we can pull to address the climate crisis while also strengthening our regional economy, protecting ratepayers, creating high quality jobs, and improving public health by reducing pollution.
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