Feds give OK to two wind farms off New Jersey’s coast
One of two wind turbines off the coast of Virginia Beach that comprise Dominion Energy’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind pilot project. (Sarah Vogelsong/ Virginia Mercury)
Federal authorities approved the construction of up to 195 wind turbines off of New Jersey’s coast Tuesday in a victory for Gov. Phil Murphy’s wind energy agenda.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a record of decision approving two offshore wind farms to be constructed by Atlantic Shores roughly 10 miles offshore from Atlantic City.
“Our clean energy future is now a reality — thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda we are addressing climate change, fostering job growth, and promoting equitable economic opportunities for all communities,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement.
The administrative action paves the way for construction to begin on Atlantic Shores Projects one and two, wind farms that are set to generate more than 2,800 megawatts of combined power when complete — enough to power more than 1 million homes.
Murphy has set ambitious renewable energy goals for New Jersey that call on the state to draw 100% of its power from renewable sources by 2035 and to create at least 11,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2040.
The governor on Tuesday thanked President Joe Biden for “bringing us one step closer to a 100% clean energy future.”
Tuesday’s decision comes after Murphy’s wind energy ambitions ran into a series of hurdles in recent years, including Danish wind giant Ørsted’s withdrawal from two proposed 1,100-megawatt wind farms last October.
State energy regulators have continued to solicit and award bids for wind energy despite the stumbles.
In January, the Board of Public Utilities approved two wind farms that together would generate more than 3,700 megawatts of power.
In late April, the board opened a fourth round of bidding for offshore wind projects, which is due to close on July 10. The solicitation seeks between 1,200 and 4,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity.
The board in May announced it would open a fifth round of bids for offshore wind projects in the second quarter of 2025, more than a year before the original start date in the third quarter of 2026.
The new timeline means Murphy’s administration will preside over a round of offshore wind bidding that would otherwise have happened under his successor. The governor is barred from seeking a third consecutive term that would extend his tenure past the first weeks of 2026.
New Jersey Republicans have broadly opposed offshore wind, charging wind surveying work confused whales and caused a spate of whale deaths and strandings along the eastern seaboard.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has pointed to climate change to explain elevated deaths and strandings since 2016, saying warmer waters pushed marine life into busier waterways where they are more likely to be struck and killed by boats.
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