September 10, 2023 — Ørsted, a clean energy company, will conduct offshore geophysical surveys in Delaware this Fall in support of Skipjack Wind’s development.
Skipjack Wind is a 966-megawatt offshore wind farm that is planned to power nearly 300,000 homes in the region. It’s important to note however that there is no site at the moment for an interconnection facility that would bring cables on shore. An onshore site is necessary before the project can come to fruition. Past proposed interconnection facility sites included Bethany Beach and Fenwick Island State Park, but nothing has been finalized. The latter was struck down after massive public opposition.
The US-flagged R/V Shackleford will conduct high-resolution geophysical surveys in the nearshore ocean environment to approximately 6 miles off Delaware’s coast. The purpose is to collect data about the seafloor and the geology beneath it, and to identify potential archaeological resources and debris left by other ocean users.