Biden-Harris Administration Announces Mid-Atlantic Offshore Wind Lease Sale

Date: Friday, June 28, 2024
Contact: [email protected]

WASHINGTON — In another move by the Biden-Harris administration to support the growing momentum across America for a clean energy economy, the Department of the Interior today announced that it will host an offshore wind lease sale in the Central Atlantic. The areas, which will be auctioned on August 14, 2024, by the Office of Ocean Energy Management, could generate up to 6.3 gigawatts of clean, renewable energy and power up to 2.2 million homes. Today’s announcement is one of many steps the Department is taking to expand offshore wind opportunities, building on investments made under the President’s Investing in America program and creating good-paying jobs for American workers.

“On America’s shores, we continue to see the enthusiasm and momentum of the Biden-Harris administration in support of a clean energy future,” he said. Secretary Deb Haaland. “We are taking action to revitalize the U.S. offshore wind industry and leverage American innovation to deliver reliable, affordable energy to homes and businesses, while also addressing the climate crisis. To that end, we are working with states, tribes and stakeholders to ensure we make wise decisions and effectively use our nation’s marine resources.”

“We are excited to announce this sale and underscore our commitment to exploring additional areas in the mid-Atlantic for potential offshore wind development,” he said. BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. “BOEM will continue to work with all ocean users to ensure that offshore wind energy is deployed in an environmentally responsible manner.”

Bidenomics and the President’s Investing in America agenda are growing the American economy from the inside out and the bottom up—from rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, to pumping more than half a trillion dollars in new private-sector investment in manufacturing and clean energy in the United States, to creating good-paying jobs and building a clean energy economy that will combat the climate crisis and make our communities more resilient.

Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, the Department has approved the first eight commercial offshore wind projects in federal waters. BOEM has completed four offshore wind lease transactions, including offshore New York, New Jersey and the Carolinas, as well as the first-ever offshore sale off the Pacific and Gulf Coasts. The Department recently announced a timeline for up to 12 additional lease transactions through 2028.

Final Sale Notice (FSN) to be published in the format Federal Register July 1 includes one offshore area in the states of Delaware and Maryland and one offshore area in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The A-2 lease area covers 101,443 acres and is located approximately 26 nautical miles (nm) from the Delaware Bay. The C-1 lease area covers 176,505 acres and is located approximately 35 nautical miles from the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. Seventeen companies qualified for the August sale.

BOEM partnered with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science to develop a comprehensive, ecosystem-based ocean planning model that helped select the final lease areas. The FSN contains detailed information on the areas available for lease, some of the terms and conditions of the lease, auction details, criteria for evaluating competitive offers, and procedures for the granting of leases, appeals and execution of leases. Details of the FSN, along with a map of the area, can be found on the BOEM website.

BOEM includes several lease and tender credit terms that would reaffirm its commitment to creating good-paying jobs and working with ocean users and other stakeholders. Some of these provisions, which are part of the FSN, include:

• A 12.5% ​​bid credit will be provided to bidders who commit to supporting offshore wind workforce training programmes, developing a domestic offshore wind supply chain, or both.
• Providing a 12.5% ​​bid credit to bidders that establish and contribute to a Fisheries Mitigation Compensation Fund or contribute to an existing fund designed to mitigate potential adverse effects of offshore wind development in the mid-Atlantic on commercial and recreational for-hire fisheries.
• A provision that tenants will use their best efforts to enter into a design work agreement covering the construction phase of any project relating to the leasable space; communication plans for tribes, agencies and fisheries; and semi-annual reports on tribal and community engagement activities.

BOEM will also continue to convene the Central Atlantic Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force to strengthen cooperation and explore and identify potential additional areas for future offshore wind leasing. These ongoing intergovernmental efforts include the December 2023 Commitment and the June 2024 Memorandum of Understanding, which outlines joint work between the Biden-Harris Administration and the State of Maryland to evaluate additional areas off the coast of Maryland that could become wind energy areas and support the development of offshore wind farm projects.

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