Wind farm off New Jersey coast wins Biden’s approval as locals balk 

The Biden administration on Wednesday approved Orsted A/S’s Ocean Wind 1 project, setting the stage for installation of as many as 98 turbines in waters off New Jersey over the opposition of some local residents.

The approval represents the third commercial-scale project of its kind in federal waters to win the US government’s backing – all under President Joe Biden – and another step toward his goal of installing 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by the end of the decade.

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland called the authorization “another milestone in our efforts to create good-paying union jobs while combating climate change and powering our nation.”

Under the Interior Department’s approval, as many as 98 turbines and three offshore substations could be installed about 13 nautical miles (24 kilometers) southeast of Atlantic City, with power cables coming ashore in Ocean County and Cape May County. According to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the project is estimated to have a generating capacity of 1.1 gigawatts, capable of powering more than 380,000 homes.

Project located 13 nautical miles (24 km) southeast of Atlantic City. Source: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

The development comes even as the nation’s burgeoning offshore wind industry confronts other obstacles, from rising costs to local opposition. In New Jersey, for instance, project foes have gone to court to challenge a state approval of Ocean Wind 1, alleging it will harm marine life, commercial fishing stocks and the beach-based economy.

The authorization makes Ocean Wind 1 the second Orsted project of its kind approved in US waters. The Danish developer is already building the South Fork wind farm near Rhode Island in a joint venture with Massachusetts-based utility Eversource Energy. Work is also underway on the Vineyard Wind LLC project near Martha’s Vineyard, which won Interior Department approval in May 2021.

Already, the US offshore wind supply chain is “coming to life,” said Liz Burdock, head of the Business Network for Offshore Wind, citing “factory workers in Paulsboro, New Jersey, fabricators in Baltimore, Maryland, and construction workers at New Jersey’s wind port.

Ocean Wind 1 had been a joint partnership with Public Service Enterprise Group. But Orsted bought out the energy supplier’s 25% equity stake in the venture earlier this year, after PSEG Chief Executive Ralph LaRossa told investors the company was reviewing the project’s costs.

Developers have planned more than a dozen wind projects in US federal waters, as they rush to take advantage of tax credits expanded in last year’s climate law and a wave of state interest in new clean energy supplies. However, supply chain woes and higher costs stoked by inflation continue to dog their efforts. BloombergNEF estimates the price of subsidized US offshore wind projects has climbed to $114.20 per megawatt-hour in 2023 – up 48% from 2021.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy – who has relentlessly championed offshore wind – called the approval “a pivotal inflection point” for the state’s plans, which include getting 11 gigawatts of electricity from coastal turbines by 2040. And the state legislature just passed a measure that would enable Orsted to retain federal tax credits tied to the Ocean Wind project, instead of those incentives being passed on to taxpayers.

But dozens of New Jersey mayors have demanded a halt in offshore wind development so government officials can investigate recent whale deaths. And Republican lawmakers from the state have raised other concerns, including foreign ownership of some wind developers and the prospect of higher power bills.