BOEM releases final environmental statement for New Jersey’s first offshore wind farms

The Office of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) continues its efforts to make progress in reviewing and approving U.S. offshore wind projects. The final step is the issuance of a final environmental impact statement (EIS) for two New Jersey projects that are critical to the state’s efforts to jump-start its renewable wind energy efforts.

Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, a joint venture between Shell New Energies US and EDF-RE Offshore Development, has submitted a combined plan to construct and operate two wind energy facilities and associated export cables on the Outer Continental Shelf offshore New Jersey. If approved, both projects could generate about 2,800 megawatts of electricity, enough to power nearly a million homes.

“We are encouraged to watch progress and move another step closer to realizing New Jersey’s first offshore wind projects,” said Joris Veldhoven, CEO of Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind.

The original lease auction took place in 2015 and ended in 2016, although it was later assigned in 2018. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) awarded the Atlantic Shores project 1 Offshore Renewable Energy Credit (OREC) in 2021 for the supply of 1,510 MW of renewable energy to the state of New Jersey.

New Jersey set a goal of achieving 100% clean energy by 2035, but suffered delays and major setbacks in 2023 when Ørsted abandoned two planned projects, citing changing economic conditions. Gov. Phil Murphy called it a “bump in the road,” promising to launch a new call for applications in summer 2024.

Atlantic Shores remains the most advanced project in New Jersey, but it likely won’t come on stream until 2027 and 2028. The next step will be construction and operations plan approval from BOEM as the project approval process continues.

The joint venture partnership has a total of three lease areas (Atlantic Shores)

The combined proposal for the first two projects includes a total of up to 200 wind turbines and up to ten offshore substations with subsea transmission cables that could potentially come ashore in Atlantic City and Sea Girt. The lease area covers approximately 102,124 acres and is located approximately 9 miles offshore in New Jersey at its closest point. FEIS for Atlantic Shores Projects 1 and 2 will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days.

The company has a total of three lease areas under construction, the third of which will be awarded in 2021, located in the area of ​​​​the Atlantic Ocean known as the New York Bay. BOEM has just begun the environmental review process for this proposal.

The Department of the Interior highlights that it has approved the nation’s first eight commercial offshore wind projects totaling more than 10 gigawatts of clean energy as part of the Biden administration’s goal of bringing on board 30 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2030. As of January 2021. The Department has conducted four offshore wind leasing auctions and recently published a new five-year offshore wind leasing schedule that includes up to 12 potential offshore wind leasing sales in the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, Pacific and Pacific Oceans. waters off the coast of U.S. territories over the next five years.

Even though permits continue to be issued, the industry continues to struggle to complete its first major projects. The South Fork Wind project, developed by Ørsted and Eversource, was completed in March 2024, but Vineyard Wind, developed by Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, is reported to be behind schedule. A report by local newspaper the Commonwealth Beacon said that as of mid-May, only 16 of the planned 62 turbines had been installed, but companies hope to speed up installation thanks to better weather during the summer months.

Foundation installation began in May on two additional major projects, Revolution Wind, which will power Connecticut and Rhode Island, and Dominion Energy’s project near Virginia Beach. Revolution Wind doesn’t expect first power until 2025, while Dominion expects its project in late 2026.