August 21, 2018 — The state is working to open the bidding for the first 1,100 megawatts of offshore wind energy by the end of the year, in time for developers to qualify for 2019 federal tax credits, a spokesperson for the Board of Public Utilities told a meeting of wind developers and supporters Monday.
That should save ratepayers about 12 percent of the building costs, said Anne Marie McShea, off-shore wind program administrator for the BPU at the conference Time for Turbines: What a Difference a Year Makes on Monday at the Atlantic County Utility Authority’s wastewater treatment facility.
The federal credits are due to end at the end of next year.
Ratepayers will finance the construction of offshore wind farms through an add-on to their monthly bills, awarded as Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Credits to developers in a competitive process.
The rules for the OREC process were published in the New Jersey Register on Monday, after being released in draft form last week.
The Offshore Wind Economic Development Act of 2010, intended to get the industry started here, was not implemented under Gov. Chris Christie, said Doug O’Malley of Environment New Jersey, one of the organizers. But Gov. Phil Murphy, who is looking for the state to rely 100 percent on clean energy by 2050, has made it a priority.