- BOEM begins the environmental process for LLC’s offshore wind project.
- The project could result in a complex with a 1.1 to 2 GW capacity.
- US Wind’s project may deliver electricity to 650,000 homes in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia each year.
The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has begun the environmental evaluation process for US Wind LLC’s offshore wind project in Maryland, the first to be built in a federal lease area in state waters.
The company, which is majority-owned by Renexia SpA, an Italian renewables developer, wants to build up to 121 turbines and four offshore substations in a lease area roughly ten nautical miles off the coast of Ocean City and nine nautical miles off the coast of Sussex County, Delaware. According to BOEM, the project could result in a complex with a 1.1 to 2 GW capacity.
This week, the government agency will issue a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare the project’s Construction and Operations Plan’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) (COP). The BOEM will solicit public input for 30 days following the issuance of the NOI to determine the scope of its environmental evaluation. By July 8, public comments will be received.
US Wind has the right to develop 1.5 GW of wind farms on an 80,000-hectare lease area off the coast of Maryland. The first phase of that region is MarWin, and it will house a 270-MW wind farm operational in 2024. The company also received Offshore Renewable Energy Credits (ORECs) for its 808.5-MW Momentum Wind project last year. Both projects and later developments within the company’s control area are included in the environmental study.
If approved, US Wind’s project may deliver electricity to 650,000 homes in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia each year.