South Carolina taking steps towards offshore wind

“Today's milestone marks another important step in the President's strategy to tap clean, renewable energy from the Nation’s vast wind and solar resources,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “We know South Carolina has important wind energy potential, and we will work with stakeholders through a collaborative effort to identify high potential/low conflict areas for development, supporting investment and jobs in South Carolina.”

“This announcement represents a significant step forward in facilitating the responsible development of emissions-free renewable energy to power homes and strengthen our clean energy economy,” said BOEM Director Abigail Ross Hopper. “We are working with the state of South Carolina, industry and a broad range of stakeholders to ensure that commercial wind leasing is done smartly and in a manner that engages stakeholders throughout our process.”
 
BOEM's offshore program has awarded nine commercial wind energy leases in federal waters off the Atlantic coast, including seven leases issued as a result of competitive lease sales (two leases in an area offshore Rhode Island-Massachusetts, two offshore Massachusetts, two offshore Maryland, and one offshore Virginia). Two additional lease awards from the most recent competitive lease sale offshore New Jersey are undergoing Department of Justice and BOEM review.

The Department of the Interior stated that including the New Jersey offshore wind auction held on Nov. 9, 2015, competitive lease sales have generated more than $15.7 million in revenue for over one million acres in federal waters.

In July, Secretary Jewell and Director Hopper joined Rhode Island officials to celebrate “steel in the water” for the nation’s first offshore wind farm.  When completed, Deepwater Wind’s $225 million, 30-megawatt offshore wind project will provide electricity to Block Island and Rhode Island mainland consumers.