Winds of Change

ith a surface water area larger than the entire UK, the five Great Lakes might seem like an obvious location for offshore wind. The US Department of Energy says that the lakes collectively boast the potential to provide 700 gigawatts of offshore electricity – enough to power millions of homes.

Nonetheless, projects and proposals have failed to get off the ground. Until now.

The Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation (Leedco) is planning to build Icebreaker, a demonstration wind farm generating 20 megawatts of electricity several miles off the shore of Cleveland. The project would initially be small, starting with six turbines, with construction expected to begin as soon as 2025 and electricity coming online two years later.

And yet, it’s a game-changing move as North America’s first ever freshwater offshore wind project.

(23/P021) TRENTON – In consultation with NOAA Fisheries, the lead federal agency responsible for evaluating potential impacts to marine life and habitats from human activities in federal waters, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been monitoring an unusual humpback whale mortality event that has been affecting Atlantic coast states since January 2016. In January of this year, the DEP began receiving concerns from stakeholders that the development of offshore wind energy infrastructure off New Jersey’s coast is causing whale mortality. All offshore wind survey activities have been permitted by NOAA Fisheries and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and deemed safe for marine mammals, i.e., no injurious activities have been permitted for offshore wind developers.

As of March 2023, no offshore wind-related construction activities have taken place in waters off the New Jersey coast, and DEP is aware of no credible evidence that offshore wind-related survey activities could cause whale mortality. While DEP has no reason to conclude that whale mortality is attributable to offshore wind-related activities, DEP will continue to monitor. 

Parcel to be Purpose-built for Tier 1 wind component manufacturing, Co-located with a Marshaling Port and with Ready Access to East Coast Offshore Wind Sites

Trenton, N.J. (May 20, 2022) – The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) today announced that it will shortly launch the next phase of its eagerly-anticipated tenant selection process for the New Jersey Wind Port. This phase will involve seeking offers from Tier 1 wind component manufacturers, such as blades, for an approximately 70-acre parcel of property at the Port.   

The New Jersey Wind Port, located on the Delaware River in Lower Alloways Creek, Salem County, will be a transformative, hub-style port serving offshore wind projects in New Jersey and up and down the U.S. East Coast. The Port is being developed by the NJEDA on behalf of the State and represents a new approach to economic development that will spur both job creation and opportunities for businesses throughout the offshore wind supply chain. It has the potential to create up to 1,500 manufacturing, assembly, and operations jobs, with wind projects supported by the Port driving billions more dollars in economic growth.

The Port is situated at the geographical center of the United States’ burgeoning offshore wind sector – with approximately 40 gigawatts (GW) of committed and planned offshore wind projects along the East Coast, including 7.5 GW of projects off the coast of New Jersey. The Port will offer offshore wind industry tenants the following key features:

• Access to the Atlantic Ocean free of vertical restrictions;
• Upland acreage purpose-built for marshalling and component manufacturing;
• A wide approach channel from the main Delaware River Channel;
• A purpose-built heavy-lift wharf, comprising both delivery and installation berths; and
• Heavy-haul Road connections between inland port parcels and the Wharf.

New Jersey is located in the heart of the East Coast wind belt, and geographically positioned to be a hub for the U.S. offshore wind industry.

Under Governor Murphy’s leadership, New Jersey has established an ambitious goal of generating 11 GW of electricity from offshore wind energy by 2040 as part of the State’s Energy Master Plan to transition to 100 percent clean energy by 2035. This means 30 percent of offshore wind energy produced on the East Coast will be from New Jersey. NJEDA is investing resources to ensure that the arrival of offshore wind creates jobs and opportunities for New Jerseysans in addition to generating clean, sustainable energy.
Whether you are a large offshore wind developer, an established manufacturer or supplier looking to relocate, or a small business interested in joining the offshore wind supply chain, New Jersey is the place for your business to get started, get established, and grow.  See below for more information on New Jersey’s Offshore Wind Sector, and the programs and resources NJEDA has for developing the offshore wind economy.

Policy makers, energy stakeholders and faculty gathered at the third annual Clean and Sustainable Energy Summit on September 23, hosted by Montclair State’s Clean Energy and Sustainability Analytics Center (CESAC). 

Sponsored by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) and Ocean Wind, the summit served as a forum to exchange ideas and discuss New Jersey’s plans for a sustainable future.

“Tackling the biggest impacts of climate change is critical to the world today,” says Pankaj Lal, director of CESAC and professor of Earth and Environmental Studies. “Effective communication between academics/researchers and decision-makers is a challenge, this summit gives all of us the opportunity to assist the fight against climate change with our ability to provide data-driven and actionable management strategies.”

Denmark’s Ørsted won New Jersey’s first offshore wind solicitation with a 1.1-gigawatt project known as Ocean Wind, the largest offshore wind project to secure a development deal with a U.S. state to date.
Ocean Wind will be built 15 miles from the Atlantic City coast, with construction expected to begin in the early 2020s and finish in 2024.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities said Ørsted will receive offshore renewable energy certificates* worth $98.10 per megawatt-hour in the project’s first year of operation, lifting the average residential customer’s monthly bill by $1.46. The project will generate enough renewable power for the equivalent of half a million homes.
Three development groups bid into New Jersey’s solicitation: Norway’s Equinor; Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, a joint venture of EDF Renewable Energy and Shell New Energies; and Ørsted.

Between 2008 and 2009, the NJDEP’s Office of Science conducted a study to obtain data on ecological resources in the Atlantic Ocean offshore New Jersey. The scope of work included data on the distribution, abundance and migratory patterns of avian, marine mammal, sea turtle and other species in the study area. The study area extends roughly 72 nautical miles from Seaside to Stone Harbor, beginning at the shoreline and extending out 20 nautical miles seaward (see map below).

In 2004 a Blue Ribbon Panel on Development of Offshore Wind Turbine Facilities was charged with identifying and weighing the costs and benefits of developing such facilities. 

In April 2006, the Blue Ribbon Panel submitted its final report to the Governor, including the recommendation that NJ proceed with a limited test project, not to exceed 350 MW in order to obtain practical knowledge of the benefits and impacts resulting from offshore wind facilities. It also called for scientific baseline studies to be conducted in order to collect data about the existence, location and nature of New Jersey’s offshore natural resources.