October 1, 2021 — The electric system across the United States is under stress from environmental and policy challenges, but a historically untapped resource is primed to make significant inroads over the coming years. For the last decade, electric generation from wind production has been growing all over the continental U.S. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the total amount of electricity produced by wind generation domestically has increased from 6 billion kWh in 2000 to 338 billion kWh in 2020, and as of last year wind generation was more than 8% of the total utility-scale generation operating in the U.S.
Yet despite that growth and the corresponding reduction in carbon emissions, one source of wind power – offshore wind production, the generation of electricity from wind turbines stationed in the ocean — is almost entirely missing. Even with its thousands of miles of coastline, the U.S. only has about 30 MW of offshore wind production from a single operating utility-scale wind farm. This pales in comparison to other parts of the world, particularly Europe, which has more than 25 GW of grid-connected offshore wind capacity from more than 100 offshore wind farms.
But as the Biden administration, state governments, and utilities prioritize addressing climate change by further reducing carbon emissions, the U.S. has looked to the European example; if current plans hold, the U.S. may soon rival Europe in its use of offshore wind.
Read the full story at Reuters