The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has received a permit application from Ørsted Ocean Wind 1 to construct near-shore and onshore components within New Jersey associated with the development of a commercial-scale, offshore wind energy facility within Lease Area OCS-0498 off the coast of New Jersey.
The overall project includes up to 98 wind turbines, inter-array cables, up to three offshore substations, two onshore substations and onshore export cable systems making landfall in New Jersey in Ocean County and Cape May County.
Within New Jersey, the subject application includes the installation of onshore export cable systems and construction of the two onshore substations, which will be located in Berkeley, Ocean and Lacey Townships within Ocean County as well as in Ocean City and Upper Township within Cape May County. The permit application is requesting approval of the following permits: Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA) Individual Permit, Waterfront Development Individual Permit (in-water), Coastal Wetlands permit, Freshwater Wetlands Individual Permit, Flood Hazard Area Individual Permit and Flood Hazard Area Verification.
The project would contribute to New Jersey’s goal of 7.5 GW of offshore wind energy generation by 2035 as outlined in New Jersey’s Governor’s Executive Order No. 92, issued on November 19, 2019. Further, the project is intended to fulfill the New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities (BPU) September 20, 2018, solicitation for 1,100 MW of offshore wind that was awarded to Ocean Wind, via the New Jersey BPU on June 21, 2019 (BPU Docket No. QO18121289).
The Department of Environmental Protection welcomes comments and any information here. There is no deadline for submission of comments at this time, as the application is currently undergoing initial administrative and technical review. Updates to deadlines for submission of comments, including additional public comment periods, will be posted on the department’s offshore wind website.
