Offshore Wind in the US is Finally Beginning Construction

At the ACP offshore wind conference on Oct. 13 and 14 2021 in Boston, MA, it was clear that after so many delays the offshore wind industry has finally started construction with the Vineyard offshore wind project leading the effort to build 30 GW of US wind power by 2030. This will take an estimated spend of about $109 Billion dollars to develop the supply chain and build this new offshore infrastructure. 

The two-day conference was a live event and included notable political figures like Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, and Senator Ed Markey, as well as the main project developers, utilities, many suppliers, environmental consultants, and many other stakeholders.  The ACP conference theme was largely about developing the massive new supply chain for a new offshore wind industry with a definite emphasis on developing, training, and certifying a workforce that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive. Union labor and developing local content was a big theme. The need for developing ports and vessels to support these new projects was evident as there were many ship owners that came up from the US Gulf states to attend and determine how they might be part of this new industry. The offshore wind industry has taken note of environmental and technology lessons learned by the offshore oil industry. 

What Are the Current Challenges?

During the discussion on “Building a Lasting Supply Chain” the moderator Kris Ohleth, Executive Director Special Initiative for Offshore Wind, New Jersey asked what the constraints and bottlenecks are to reach 30 GW by 2030. Panelist Matt Shields, Senior Offshore Wind Analyst with National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado, answered that project developers need to make the needed investments soon. Panelist Jennifer Carpenter from American Waterways Operators suggested that building out the needed ports and vessels is a big challenge as multiple developers will be competing for port and vessel resources.  Expressing another concern was Grant van Wyngaarden of Ørsted Offshore North America who suggested the main issues he sees, is the need for permitting and grid connections. As Grant was speaking from the Vineyard wind perspective, some of the following projects like Mayflower Wind and South Fork had some concerns they would be competing for various supply chain materials, labor, ports, and vessels. The current projects extend along the east coast from Massachusetts as far south as North Carolina.

Vineyard Wind 1 Leads New Projects

The Vineyard wind 1 project has started construction and is fully financed with Bank of America and Morgan Stanley the top two sources of funding. 62 GE Halide X machines are purchased and will be manufactured in France with steel towers made in the US. These are 12 MW each with 220-meter diameter rotors to be put on monopole towers spaced about a mile apart 18 miles offshore. Full power production is expected by end of 2023. The next projects are Mayflower Wind and South Fork, which should be making power by the end of 2025.  Offshore projects in the queue extend all the way down the east coast to North Carolina with NY and Virginia having big plans. The big picture is 30GW of offshore power by 2030 with a total spend of about $109 Billion by 2030. By comparison, the UK has a goal of 40GW, and China has a wind goal of 73GW by 2030.

While much of the new offshore wind will be developed off the windy and shallow east coast, there are also project being permitted in the western gulf coast and on the west coast. The Bureau of Energy Management (BOEM) was established by Department of the Interior Secretarial Order 3299 of May 19, 2010 which restructured the former Mineral Management Service, dividing its responsibilities into three new bureaus—The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR). 

What Does an Offshore Project Look Like?

The offshore projects are substantially not visible from shore. The current US offshore wind turbines are provided by GE, Siemens, and Vestas and range from 12MW to 15MW each. Offshore wind foundation types. Include monopile for shallower water common on the east coast, jacket, twisted jacket, tension-leg floating platform, semi-submersible platform, and spar-buoy. NREL illustrates these: see https://www.windpowerengineering.com/comparing-offshore-wind-turbine-foundations/

The wind turbines output AC power (~66kV) to an offshore substation and service platform. The service platform transmits HVDC power (320kV DC) to a substation on shore. Submarine cables will be installed along a carefully sited route from the offshore substation to the landing point onshore. In the case of Vineyard wind this will be at Covell’s Beach in Barnstable, MA. Submarine cables are buried up to six feet below the seafloor using a jet plow and employ horizontal directional drilling (HDD) technology. The route was selected after extensive geological surveys of the area to avoid sensitive habitats. The onshore cables will be buried beneath public roadways in Barnstable. From the onshore cable landing site, the cables will be installed underground along public roads to an onshore substation in the village of Hyannis. The Vineyard Wind 1 onshore substation will be adjacent to an existing Eversource substation.

Please note the upcoming ARC Industry Forum held in Orlando February 14-17, 2022.