U.S. Offshore Wind Seeing Some Momentum

Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--With offshore ambitions growing, U.S. government officials toured what they said would be a first-of-its kind vessel designated for offshore wind turbine installation.

Officials with the Interior Department toured the Charybdis, which is currently under construction for Dominion Energy Incorporated (NYSE:D) (Richmond, Virginia) at a shipyard in Texas. The vessel is designed specifically for the next generation of offshore turbines, which can boast a peak capacity of 14.7 megawatts (MW).

Once launched in either late 2024 or early 2025, it will be the first U.S.-built, Jones Act-qualified wind installation vessel. The Jones Act stipulates that goods transported by water between U.S. ports be carried on ships built in the country and crewed and owned by U.S. citizens.

Charybdis will support the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, which will provide as much as 2.6 gigawatts (GW) of energy to around 666,000 average households. A pilot facility is already in place and the full-scale wind farm should be completed by 2026. The project company, Dominion, expects the facility to have a 33-year lifespan. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can learn more from a detailed project report.

Offshore wind in the U.S. economy is in its nascent stage, though progress is accelerating. Already in March, the government demarcated an area off the coast of Maine, New Jersey and Massachusetts that could support as much as 32 GW of wind energy.

A lease for the rights to establish offshore wind farms in the Gulf of Mexico was announced earlier this week.

"We are taking action to jumpstart America's offshore wind industry and using American innovation to deliver reliable, affordable power to homes and businesses, while also addressing the climate crisis," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement.

With an all-of-the-above energy sector in mind, groups supporting offshore infrastructure said it was consistency that was necessary for the government to meet its goals.

"Sustaining regular lease sales ensures energy continuity, fosters economic growth, and keeps the United States competitive in the global energy market," said Erik Milito, the president of the National Ocean Industries Association.

The federal government set a goal of establishing 30 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030 and another 15 GW in floating offshore capacity by 2035.

Unlike the global solar power sector, where low costs are leading to a boon in new capacity, the offshore wind market in the United States is facing significant setbacks because of cost increases, particularly those with an expected start date between 2025 and 2028.

The first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in U.S. territorial waters officially opened earlier this month when Danish wind energy company Ørsted A/S (Fredericia) and utility company Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) (Hartford, Connecticut) started operations at the 128-MW South Fork wind farm off the coast of New York.

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