Trump effect hits New Jersey offshore wind

“Today’s decision by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to cancel its fourth offshore wind solicitation is not surprising given political headwinds and the uncertainty across the U.S. economy driven by recent federal actions,” said Liz Burdock, founder and CEO of the US offshore renewable energy association Oceantic Network.

However, she said Oceantic remained confident in American offshore wind, and that there was a ‘40-state supply chain’ backed by $25 billion dollars of investment already supporting jobs and industry.

“Three commercial-scale projects are currently under construction along the East Coast, served by Gulf vessels and shipyards, midwestern steel mills and deep-water ports in the northeast,” she said. 

“We must continue to advance all forms of domestic energy to meet rising demand and support the build-out of this industry.”

While Donald Trump’s executive order, on his first day in office, to pause all new leases and permits of offshore wind projects sent shock waves through the industry, it was a temporary pause on new wind lease sales and permits, and did not immediately stop any already in progress from going ahead.

One project already under construction and still on target for commissioning next year is Dominion’s $10 billion Coastal Virgina Offshore Wind development, which spokesman Jeremy Slayton has been quoted in various media as saying will still go ahead and be completed on time.

“Virginia’s clean energy transition and our ‘all of the above’ strategy, including Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, have been under way for several years under multiple state and federal administrations and with bipartisan support from policy makers at every level,” Slayton is quoted by S&P Global as saying. “Bipartisan leaders agree it has been an economic boom for Virginia.”

According to Northeast Ocean Data, other offshore wind projects still being built include Vineyard 1, by Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners; Ocean Wind 1, Sunrise Wind and Revolution Wind, by Ørsted; Empire Offshore Wind, by Equinor; New England Wind 1, by Park City Wind; New England Wind 2, by Commonwealth Wind; Atlantic Shores South, by Shell and EDF; MarWin and Momentum Wind, by US Wind Inc; and SouthCoast Wind by Ocean Winds and Shell.