The Department of the Interior (DOI) has announced it will hold an offshore wind energy lease sale on Oct. 29 for eight areas on the Outer Continental Shelf off Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine.
If fully developed, these areas have a 13 GW total potential capacity.
The announcement follows the department’s recent announcement that it has approved more 15 GW of clean energy from offshore wind projects since the start of the Biden-Harris administration.
Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, the department has held five offshore wind lease sales, including a sale offshore New York and sales offshore the Pacific, Central Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, and approved 10 commercial-scale offshore wind projects.
Earlier this year, DOI Secretary Deb Haaland announced a schedule of potential additional lease sales through 2028.
“The upcoming Gulf of Maine offshore wind energy auction reflects our all-of-government approach for reaching the Biden-Harris Administration’s energy goals while combating the climate crisis,” says BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein.
“Together, we can do our part to facilitate a new American industry while fostering job growth and promoting equitable economic opportunities for all communities.”
The announcement is built upon research that includes the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science’s ecosystem-based spatial suitability model, as well as over two years of extensive engagement with Tribes, fishing interests and stakeholders across the region.
The area included in the Final Sale Notice (FSN) is approximately 120,000 acres less than what the BOEM included in its Proposed Sale Notice, announced earlier this year. BOEM prioritized the avoidance of offshore fishing grounds, sensitive habitats, and existing and future vessel transit routes, while still retaining sufficient acreage to support the region’s offshore wind energy goals.
The FSN for the Gulf of Maine auction includes details regarding the auction, provisions, and conditions of the leases, the lease form, information on bidding credits, criteria for evaluating competing bids, award procedures, appeal procedures and lease execution. The FSN includes several lease stipulations designed to promote the development of a robust domestic U.S. supply chain for floating wind and create good-paying union jobs, advance flexibility in transmission planning, minimize habitat impacts and collect data on protected marine mammals. The FSN will publish in the Federal Register on September 17, 2024.
The issuance of any lease resulting from this sale does not authorize the construction and operations of an offshore wind facility. A lease provides the right to submit project-specific plans. Such plans, if submitted, would be subject to environmental, technical, and public reviews prior to a decision on whether the project proposals should be approved.
