Saving Seafood

Whales recorded in large numbers off New Jersey coast

February 6, 2025 — Whales are gathering in large numbers off New Jersey in a portion of the Atlantic Ocean called the New York Bight, according to several sources.

Viking Yacht Company of New Gretna, Burlington County, posted to Facebook that a large group of North Atlantic right whales, an endangered species with only about 360 individuals left, was congregating in the New York Bight between the Hudson Canyon off Sandy Hook and Block Canyon off Montauk, New York.

The New York Bight is a triangular area of ocean that stretches between the Jersey Shore and Long Island.

“NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has used planes to identify the whales — present due to large amounts of food,” Viking Yacht staff wrote on Facebook. “We’re advising boaters to be vigilant. If whale(s) are seen, provide a wide berth.”

Read the full article at the Asbury Park Press

VIRGINIA: Halftime at the General Assembly: Here’s the environmental legislation that made it through so far

February 6, 2025 — Proposals approved so far touch on topics including “virtual power plants,” data centers and environmental justice.

Virginia lawmakers are quickly moving through this year’s General Assembly session.

Tuesday marked “crossover” day, meaning all bills that made it through the House of Delegates are now sent to the Senate, and vice versa.

Dozens of proposed bills impact the future of the Commonwealth’s climate, environment and energy policy. Here’s a (non-exhaustive) look at where they stand.

Read the full article at WHRO

Trump Didn’t Kill New Jersey’s Wind Farms. Economics Did

February 6, 2025 — Donald Trump’s supporters and opponents alike are giving the president credit for “killing” an offshore wind farm project along the coast of New Jersey.

An executive order pausing permitting for offshore wind projects cast doubt on that project’s viability, New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities indicated in a statement this week. It is indisputable that creating uncertainty in this market threw a wrench in the works. But as Politico confessed, the “challenges” that Governor Phil Murphy’s project encountered “include economic conditions beyond Murphy’s control and Trump.”

Read the full article at National Review

VIRGINIA: Dominion says cost of Virginia Beach wind farm is up and customers will pay more

February 5, 2025 — The utility said the increase of nearly $1 billion is tied to higher costs of required upgrades to the electric grid and onshore electrical infrastructure.

The cost of building the nation’s largest offshore wind farm off the Virginia Beach coast has jumped by nearly 10% since the original budget, Dominion Energy announced this week.

The utility now plans to spend $10.7 billion on the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, up from $9.8 billion in 2021.

Dominion said in a news release the increase is tied to higher costs from building electrical interconnection onshore, as well as network upgrades assigned by the regional electric grid operator.

That operator, PJM Interconnection, coordinates the movement of electricity in 13 states, including Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.

“New electric generation resources constructed within PJM, like CVOW, are assigned costs by PJM that are deemed necessary to effectively integrate these resources and ensure the reliability and stability of the electric grid,” Dominion said in this week’s statement.

Read the full article at WHRO

NEW JERSEY: NJ’s 4th offshore wind solicitation awards no bids (updated)

February 5, 2025 — In the latest sign of industry headwinds, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) announced Feb. 3 it was not making any awards in the state’s fourth offshore wind solicitation.

“The Board will not proceed with an award in New Jersey’s fourth offshore wind solicitation,” said NJBPU President Christine Guhl-Sadovy. “There were three initial bids in the fourth solicitation. However, two bidders withdrew and only Atlantic Shores submitted a best and final offer.”

As NJBIZ reported in July, Atlantic Shores rebid Project 1 – which already has Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificates (OREC) – bundled with Project 2. The effort has been slated as New Jersey’s first offshore wind farm. Officials said that the proposal aimed at providing a more resilient, competitive and sustainable path through the advanced permitting program.

Read the full article at NJ Biz

VIRGINIA: Cost of Virginia Beach wind farm jumps almost $1 billion, with increase passed onto customers

February 4, 2025 — The estimated cost of Dominion Energy’s 2.6-gigawatt Virginia Beach offshore wind farm has increased about 9%, which will mean a 43-cent increase on an average monthly residential power bill.

In a Monday announcement, Dominion said the total cost estimate of its wind farm had increased from $9.8 billion to $10.7 billion. The cost increase is due to higher network upgrade costs assigned by PJM, the regional electric grid operator, as well as higher onshore electrical interconnection costs, according to the statement.

“Higher network upgrade cost estimates by PJM reflect the significant increase in demand growth that require incremental generation and transmission resources across the system,” Dominion said in the statement.

Read the full article at The Virginian-Pilot

NEW JERSEY: Another blow to NJ’s offshore wind industry

February 3, 2025 — Oil giant Shell announced Thursday it’s pausing its involvement in what is set to be the state’s first offshore wind farm, Atlantic Shores.

“Hopefully the project is dead and gone, as almost all unsightly and environmentally unsound Windmill project should be,” President Donald Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

“First Ørsted pulled out of these projects, and now Shell is following suit,” said U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-2nd). “They are beginning to realize what we have been saying all along: these projects are not a practical or viable solution for our energy needs. The promises made by the offshore wind industry were always too good to be true…”

Read the full article at the NJ Spotlight News

Ørsted Ousts CEO as Pressure Continues in Offshore Wind Sector

February 3, 2025 — Danish renewable energy giant Ørsted reported today, January 31, a change in CEOs as the company continues to struggle with pressures in the offshore wind sector. The news of the change in leadership came just days after Ørsted reported it would be taking a further $1.7 billion in impairment charges related to its U.S. offshore wind projects following a massive $5.6 billion write-down in November 2023.

The board of directors announced that the company was replacing Mads Nipper who had led the company as Group President and CEO since January 2021. They reported he is stepping down effective tomorrow, February 1, but acknowledged during his four-year tenure Ørsted’s installed renewable capacity grew from 11.3 GW to the current 18.2 GW in 2025.

“The renewable energy market has fundamentally changed since January 2021. The impacts on our business of the increasingly challenging situation in the offshore wind industry, ranging from supply chain bottlenecks, interest rate increases, to a changing regulatory landscape, mean that our focus has shifted. Therefore, the board has today agreed with Mads Nipper that it’s the right time for him to step down, and the board has appointed Rasmus Errboe to take over as CEO,” announced Lene Skole, Chair of Ørsted’s Board of Directors.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

NEW JERSEY: Shell pulls out of N.J.’s 1st offshore wind farm. Is project now at risk?

January 31, 2025 — Shell has effectively withdrawn from New Jersey’s first offshore wind farm, Atlantic Shores — marking the latest major setback to the state’s clean energy ambitions.

Spokespeople told NJ Advance Media on Thursday that the developer remained committed to the project.

At the end of last year, Atlantic Shores (made up of both Shell New Energies US and EDF Renewables North America) noted that its plans for nearly 200 wind turbines were on schedule.

The CEO of the developer also said construction on the wind farm — set to be built roughly 8 to 20 miles off the coast of New Jersey between Atlantic City and Barnegat Light — could begin some time in 2025.

Read the full article at NJ.com

MAINE: Maine Republican legislators write Trump asking for further action to stop offshore wind

January 31, 2025 —  Maine Republican legislators wrote a letter to President Donald Trump thanking him for his recent action on offshore wind and asking him to take it a step further.

The letter sent Thursday was authored by Rep. Reagan Paul (R-Winterport). Offshore wind was a key issue for Paul in her reelection campaign last year after the state announced its hopes to build a port in her district to support its larger goals to develop 3,000 megawatts of offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine by 2040.

“Common sense, economics and environmental concerns are against the offshore wind projects proposed by Democrats for the Gulf of Maine,” Paul said in a news release Thursday, noting her appreciation for Trump’s swift action on the matter.

She went on to say that she and her Republican legislative colleagues “are asking his administration to finish the job before irrevocable harm is inflicted on marine wildlife, coastal communities and our quality of life.”

Read the full article at Maine Morning Star