The Department of the Interior has announced the results from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s wind energy auction for two lease areas offshore the states of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. The sale—the first in the region in a decade—resulted in two provisional winners and $92.65 million in winning bids.
The interest and success of today’s sale represents a significant milestone toward achieving the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030 and 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind energy by 2035.
“At the start of the Administration, our nation had approved zero offshore wind energy projects. Today, we have nine—enough to power nearly 5 million homes. This is what developing a clean energy transition looks like,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “Together, we are demonstrating that, in partnership with states, Tribes, ocean users and industry, we can build an entirely new and sustainable industry that will meet the growing demands of our nation far into the future, while creating good-paying jobs and helping mitigate the threat of the climate crisis.”
Equinor Wind US LLC provisionally won Lease OCS-A 0557 at $75,001,001, which consists of 101,443 acres and is approximately 26 nautical miles (nm) from Delaware Bay. Virginia Electric and Power Co provisionally won Lease OCS-A 0558 at $17,650,500, which consists of 176,505 acres and is approximately 35 nm from the entrance of Chesapeake Bay. Six companies participated in the auction.
“This lease sale represents a major milestone in meeting the demand for clean renewable energy along the East Coast,” said Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Elizabeth Klein. “BOEM remains committed to responsible offshore wind energy development in the Central Atlantic region in a manner that avoids, reduces or mitigates potential impacts to other ocean users and the marine environment while growing local economies.”
The sale resulted in over $23 million total bidding credits. These bidding credits will result in over $11 million in investments for workforce training and domestic supply chain, and an additional $11 million for fisheries compensatory mitigation.
In addition, lease stipulations require that the lessees make every reasonable effort to enter into a project labor agreement covering the construction stage of any project for the lease areas; develop communication plans for Tribes, agencies, and fisheries; and provide semi-annual reports on engagement activities with Tribes and communities.
The leases awarded today do not authorize the construction or operation of an offshore wind facility. Rather, a lease provides the right to submit a project plan for BOEM’s review. BOEM will develop an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze the specific impacts of any project proposals before making decisions on whether to approve a proposed construction and operations plan. The EISs would be prepared in consultation with Tribes and appropriate government agencies, and informed by input from stakeholders, ocean users, and the public.
BOEM will also continue to convene the Central Atlantic Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force to enhance collaboration and to explore and identify potential additional areas for future offshore wind leasing. These ongoing intergovernmental efforts include a June 2024 Memorandum of Understanding that outlines joint work by the Biden-Harris administration and the State of Maryland to evaluate additional areas off Maryland’s shores that could become wind energy areas and support the development of offshore wind projects.
BOEM is committed to workforce development and safety and to the establishment of a durable domestic supply chain that can sustain the US offshore wind energy industry. More information about today’s sale, including a map of the lease areas, requirements regarding the bidding credits, and lease stipulations can be found on BOEM’s website.
