Saving Seafood

NEW JERSEY: Complaint against offshore wind developer Atlantic Shores dismissed by NJ utilities board

December 26, 2023 — An anti-offshore wind organization suffered a loss Wednesday when a state agency dismissed its petition to open a hearing that would have affected the income of Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, a 1.5-gigawatt project that will be built off Long Beach Island.

The organization Save Long Beach Island Inc., or Save LBI, petitioned the state Board of Public Utilities for a hearing, saying the board should decrease the value of Atlantic Shores’ Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificates, better known as ORECs.

Renewable energy certificates, including those for offshore wind projects, determine how much electricity customers pay for renewable energy and are issued for each megawatt-hour of electricity generated for the power grid. The prices are calculated through the costs of equipment, construction and operational costs, project revenue, tax incentives, grants and other subsidies and expenses for a project.

In August, Save LBI filed a petition for a hearing from the Board of Public Utilities and argued Atlantic Shores’ OREC prices were too high. The organization said in its filing that the OREC calculation did not include impacts on local tourism and commercial fisheries, miscalculated the social cost of carbon, and “misrepresent(ed) statewide impacts.”

“They’re simply not calculating these benefits and costs correctly,” said Bob Stern, president of Save LBI.

Read the full article at app.

Wind farm off New Jersey likely to ‘adversely affect’ but not kill whales, feds say

December 19, 2023 — The lone remaining offshore wind project in New Jersey with preliminary approval is likely to “adversely affect” whales and other marine mammals, but its construction, operation and eventual dismantling will not seriously harm or kill them, a federal scientific agency said.

In a biological opinion issued Monday night, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the Atlantic Shores project, to be built off the state’s southern coast, is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any species of endangered whales, sea turtles, or fish.

Nor is it anticipated to destroy or adversely modify any designated critical habitat, the agency said.

Jennifer Daniels, the company’s development director, called NOAA’s decision “the next step forward” for the project.

It’s “a testament to the five years and 40-plus environmental assessments completed to ensure we are delivering safe, reliable, renewable power in a way that prioritizes responsible ocean development,” Daniels wrote.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

New Jersey Plans to Restart Offshore Wind in 2024 After “Bump in the Road”

December 4, 2023 — The Governor of New Jersey is looking to restart his state’s offshore wind programs reiterating that they remain committed to offshore wind as a key component of the state’s renewable energy program. The state said the governor’s action reaffirmed its overall commitment to achieving 100 percent clean energy by 2035 and developing the economy by building the industry and its supporting supply chain.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) was directed by the governor to accelerate the timeline of the state’s fourth offshore wind solicitation. Originally scheduled for the summer of 2024, Governor Phil Murphy on November 29 directed NJBPU to launch the next offshore wind solicitation in early 2024. However, the state does not expect to announce the awards in early 2025 for projects that will not be operational till 2032.

“I have directed the BPU to take this action in recognition of the strong future of New Jersey’s offshore wind industry,” said Governor Murphy. “New Jersey can – and will – continue to remain a burgeoning offshore wind development hub that attracts new projects and their accompanying economic and environmental benefits for generations to come.”

Read the full story at The Maritime Executive

The ocean is a noisy place for sea life. What 2 years of listening tells us about offshore wind.

November 30, 2023 — The ocean can be a loud place — and that’s partly because of boats.

Fishing trawlers traverse the open water for their seasonal catch. Massive cargo ships travel to the ports with a boundless assortment of goods. And take your pick of recreational boats, from lumbering passenger cruises to high-speed motorboats.

Additional noise is expected from vessels building offshore wind farms up and down the Atlantic Coast from Maine to Virginia, as the budding industry seeks to reach a bevy of clean energy goals.

Read the full article at NJ.com

‘Maybe we were too optimistic’: Ørsted executive talks about offshore wind struggles

November 28, 2023 — It has been a hard year for Ørsted. High interest rates and supply chain bottlenecks have rocked the world’s largest offshore wind developer.

Earlier this month, Ørsted wrote down the value of its U.S. portfolio by $4 billion after canceling two projects off New Jersey. The company’s stock price has lost more than half its value since the start of the year, and it recently announced a reshuffling of its management team, with the departure of the company’s chief financial officer and chief operations officer.

David Hardy is one executive who has weathered the storm. He has led the Danish-based company’s operations in the U.S. since 2020. Hardy sat down for an interview Monday with E&E News at a critical time for the company.

Ørsted is preparing to submit a new bid for Sunrise Wind in New York after regulators there rejected the company’s request to charge consumers more for the 924-megawatt project’s electricity. In New Jersey, the company is bracing for a fight over $300 million in performance guarantees related to its Ocean Wind I project. And its partner, Eversource Energy, is looking to sell its stake in three offshore wind projects.

If that wasn’t enough, Ørsted has also been in talks with the White House over implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act. Hardy has called on the administration to revise its rules governing a domestic content bonus in a bid to make it easier for offshore wind developers to qualify for tax credits.

Last week, Ørsted announced the installation of the first turbine for South Fork Wind, a 132-MW project serving New York. Hardy said it could begin generating power by the end of this week. Ørsted has also begun work for Revolution Wind, a 704-MW project serving Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

It’s obviously been a difficult year. What lessons do you take from South Fork and Revolution moving forward — not just for Ørsted but for offshore wind in the U.S.?

Well, first off, these to me are bright spots in the industry right now. It’s easy to kind of be focused on the negatives. But here’s two projects that are in construction and moving along and, between the two of them, are over 800 megawatts of offshore wind, which will be powering over 400,000 homes in New England and New York with clean power. They’re also projects that are the foundation for the supply chain, the foundation for the operation and maintenance hub, the foundation for current and future union jobs, and all kinds of other things that the industry promised. And so I think our perseverance and commitment to getting these projects built says a lot. They’re still not amazing financial return projects, but we’ve been able to work through all the challenges in the industry … to take a positive final investment decision and progress these projects.

Read the full article at E&E News

Cape May County continuing federal offshore wind suit despite Ørsted backout

November 27, 2023 — Cape May County will continue challenging permitting for offshore wind development in New Jersey despite one company abandoning its plans to build wind turbines along the coast.

Michael Donohue, who represents the county in offshore wind matters, said the decision to not rescind its lawsuit was made because Ørsted has said in statements another company could take on the leases for the projects.

“It is clear that Ørsted has abandoned the development of Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2, but it is also clear that they believe that they can sell their lease and their state and federal permits,” said Donohue. “For Ørsted to break every promise it made to multiple New Jersey communities, to break all the promises it made to trade unions in South Jersey, to break all of its contractual obligations with New Jersey agencies and then believe that it is entitled to profit from its lease and permits is the height of arrogance. The County of Cape May intends to challenge this proposition in federal and state court moving forward in connection with the litigation already underway.”

Read the full article at The Press of Atlantic City

NEW JERSEY: No Letup in Ocean City’s Fight Against Wind Farm Project

November 25, 2023 — Ocean City is taking its legal battle against an offshore wind energy farm to the next level, even though the company that was supposed to develop the project no longer plans to build it.

During a meeting Wednesday, City Council agreed to hire a law firm to represent Ocean City in its appeal against the state Board of Public Utilities over the agency’s approval of a transmission line that would have connected the offshore wind turbines to the land-based electric grid.

City Business Administrator George Savastano said the appeal is part of Ocean City’s ongoing legal strategy to oppose the wind farm, despite the developer’s announcement on Oct. 31 that it is withdrawing from the project.

“If it’s still active in the courts, it’s the city’s position that we should see this through,” Savastano said in an interview after the Council meeting.

He also noted that the city will continue its legal fight because there is the possibility that another company could come in and try to revive the wind farm project.

“This particular developer has withdrawn. That’s not to say that another project will not happen,” he said.

Earlier this year, the BPU granted an easement and regulatory permits for the wind farm’s underground transmission line, which would have come ashore at the 35th Street beach in Ocean City and crossed through environmentally sensitive wetlands along the route.

The line would have followed 35th Street to Bay Avenue, then north on Bay Avenue to Roosevelt Boulevard, west across Peck Bay at the 34th Street Bridge and then continued on to Route 9 to property near the former B.L. England power plant in Upper Township. Ultimately, it would have connected to an electric substation at the old plant.

In its ongoing legal fight, Ocean City is challenging the BPU’s authority to grant approval for the transmission line. The city also has argued that an alternative route for the line was never properly considered.

Read the full article at OCNJDaily

NEW JERSEY: Attentive Energy investing $10.6M in supply chain, startups to help New Jersey offshore wind

November 20, 2023 — A company proposing an offshore wind farm in New Jersey is investing $10.6 million in projects to help grow the industry’s supply chain and support ocean-based technology startup businesses in the state.

Attentive Energy is one of four projects proposed in New Jersey’s most recent round of solicitations for offshore wind projects. It is a collaboration between Houston-based Total Energies, and Corio Generation, with offices in Boston and London.

During an event at Brookdale Community College, Damian Bednarz, the company’s president, said Attentive Energy will invest $6.6 million in SeaAhead. That is a company that supports ocean-related technology firms; it will establish a business incubator program in New Jersey.

Read the full article the Associated Press

NEW JERSEY: With Ørsted’s offshore wind farms stopped, what will happen to $300M in guarantees?

November 13, 2023 — An offshore wind developer that is backing out of deals to build windfarms off New Jersey is under new criticism as the company attempts to pull out of paying millions of dollars in performance guarantees.

Denmark-based Ørsted announced last month it would not build two wind energy farms off the southern New Jersey coastline, despite initial approvals from New Jersey and federal officials.

This month, the company sent a letter to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities stating it withdrawing a Compliance Filing on its Ocean Wind 1 project. The company had deposited $200 million into escrow for the project, which would be put toward manufacturing facilities for turbine monopiles in Paulsboro, Gloucester County, according to board documents.

Read the full article at app.

Fallout as Ørsted unwinds Ocean Wind 1 project

November 7, 2023 — After dropping its flagship U.S. project Ocean Wind, Ørsted is seeking to pull back $300 million in obligations to New Jersey.

Once its board of directors had decided to kill the 1,100-megawatt plan on Oct. 31, the next day Ørsted notified the state Board of Public Utilities that it wants to get back a $100 million guarantee that it would complete the project. The company is also pulling back on $200 million it had planned to invest with steel fabricator EEW for its monopile foundation manufacturing plan in Paulsboro, N.J.

Ørsted and state officials signed off on those promises just weeks before the surprise announcement that Ocean Wind 1 and 2 would not be built – a move that Ørsted CEO Mads Nipper said would address more than 70 percent of the company’s recent $2.3 billion writedown of its assets in the beleaguered U.S. offshore wind market.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman