Offshore Wind in the Eastern United States

In this policy brief, we present an estimate of the baseline costs and benefits of OSW deployment in the eastern United States absent federal tax incentives or projected future technology improvements to advance the understanding of the “raw cost” for a hypothetical offshore wind project as of the end of 2020. Technology and exact costs may change, but this analysis can serve as a starting template for evaluating the financial viability of OSW projects.…

Federal Revenue and Economic Impacts from BOEM Offshore Wind Leasing

In October 2021, BOEM announced a proposed schedule for seven new lease area auctions across the United States by 2025. These include areas in the New York Bight, Northern & Central California, Carolina Long Bay, Oregon, the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf of Maine, and the Central Atlantic. In the first three lease areas—New York Bight, California, and Carolina Long Bay—BOEM has already progressed to the Proposed Sale Notice (PSN) phase of the leasing process within previously identified Wind Energy Areas (WEAs). This study forecasts the revenue that BOEM could expect to accrue both from the sale of the area …

Offshore Wind Energy: Federal Leasing, Permitting, Deployment, and Revenues

Offshore wind continues to be of interest as a potentially significant renewable energy resource for the United States. Offshore wind power relies on turbines constructed in bodies of water, which use wind to generate electricity. According to some estimates, offshore regions of the contiguous United States and Hawaii have the net technical potential to generate more than 7,000 terawatt hours per year of wind–based electricity—nearly twice the amount of electricity used annually in the United States in recent years—although these estimates do not take into account considerations of economic …

Offshore Wind to Green Hydrogen: Insights from Europe

This report provides an overview of the plans, strategies, proposals, and challenges for the development of green hydrogen from offshore wind generation in Europe. It describes the current policy drivers facilitating its development, as well as potential future support mechanisms, value streams, and market barriers. It examines the cost, safety, and emissions impacts of green hydrogen admixtures. It includes case studies of European hydrogen strategies and pilot projects.

The report concludes with implications for the US. It notes that the US is at a much earlier stage of offshore wind development than Europe and that US wind farms’ output will …

California’s Offshore Wind Electricity Opportunity

California has set forth an ambitious goal of generating all of its electricity from clean and carbon-free technologies by the year 2045. The state is planning for this target, outlined in California Senate Bill 100, to be met primarily by several renewable sources like solar, land-based wind, geothermal, along with energy storage and other zero-carbon technologies. Wind energy has long been proven to be a technologically feasible and economically viable option. Moreover, momentum is increasing to include California’s offshore wind (OSW) energy as a complement to the state’s current renewable energy and storage resources.

In this report, we provide a …

Envisioning Offshore Wind for California

On May 25, 2021, the Biden Administration and the State of California jointly announced their intent to advance floating offshore wind in two locations along California’s coast—a 399 square mile area located offshore of Morro Bay and an area offshore of Humboldt—with lease auctions expected in 2022. This followed on the heels of a federal announcement in late March establishing a nationwide offshore wind energy target of 30 GW by 2030. Offshore wind could become an essential piece of California’s renewable energy puzzle while delivering on multiple statewide goals, from tackling climate change and addressing environmental justice to building a …

Tracking the Impacts of Innovation: Offshore wind as a case study

Clean energy technology innovation – particularly research, development and demonstration (RD&D) – plays a critical role in accelerating the global energy transition. As this transition progresses and ambitions grow, the need for strong government support for innovation grows alongside it. Innovation support is a combination of multiple measures, including RD&D funding (from the public and private sectors), market instruments and policy measures. Together, these guide and encourage innovation activities.

This report from the International Renewable Energy Agency is an initial output of two interlinked projects focused on tracking innovation impacts: first, the Innovation Impacts Dashboard (IID) project – funded by …

The Future of Offshore Wind Energy in the United States

On March 26th, the Labor Energy Partnership (LEP), an initiative of the Energy Futures Initiative and the AFL-CIO, hosted a private roundtable discussion on the Future of U.S. Offshore Wind Energy. This roundtable of key thought leaders is meant to inform the development of the offshore wind industry as policymakers consider infrastructure funding, economic recovery, and the development of the U.S. Nationally Determined Contribution as part of the Paris Agreement.…

Offshore Wind for America

Offshore wind has the technical capacity to power the country with clean energy. The United States has the technical potential to produce more than 7,200 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity from offshore wind, which is almost two times the amount of electricity the U.S. consumed in 2019 and about 90% of the amount of electricity the nation would consume in 2050 if we electrified our buildings, transportation system and industry and transitioned them to run on electricity instead of fossil fuels.

Offshore wind can help repower the U.S. with clean energy – but taking advantage of the opportunity will require support …

Offshore Wind Energy: Planned Projects May Lead to Construction of New Vessels in the U.S., but Industry Has Made Few Decisions amid Uncertainties

This report examines (1) approaches to use of vessels that developers are considering for offshore wind, consistent with Jones Act requirements, and the extent to which such vessels exist, and (2) the challenges industry stakeholders have identified associated with constructing and using such vessels to support U.S. offshore wind, and the actions federal agencies have taken to address these challenges.…