PMSS America Inc., the U.S. division of renewable energy consultancy TUV SUD PMSS, says investor diversity is critical for the U.S. offshore wind sector to be successful in the long term.
The company adds that the financial viability of U.S. offshore wind is also dependent on the ability to rapidly secure early-stage construction wins and achieve energy generation success, as well as on the completion of key auction wins and steady progress toward research-and-development milestones.
The comments follow recent confirmation from the U.S. Department of Energy that 14 offshore wind projects, representing nearly 4.9 GW, have entered ‘advanced stages’ of development in the country.
‘Over the past 18 months, the U.S. offshore wind industry has taken a number of significant steps forward, as it moves from a nascent, emerging market toward a point where it can make a valuable contribution toward U.S. energy supply and demand,’ says Sebastian Chivers, director of PMSS America Inc.
‘However, while consultancies like ours continue to back and support this key market, the extent to which that momentum can be maintained is as much dependent on fostering greater investor and supply chain diversity as it is on getting steel in the water,’ he adds.
‘As the U.S. Department of the Interior's recent announcement to auction off about 334,000 acres off the coast of New Jersey and last month's lease sale off the coast of Maryland have shown, the opportunity and market potential is growing. To succeed, it requires broad-based financial appetite and supply chain competition, from the start.’
In July, TUV SUD PMSS was selected to provide strategic guidance to the U.S. Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement on cable spacing for U.S. offshore wind projects. In September, the company announced the appointment of Doug Pfeister as a senior vice president, following his move from the Offshore Wind Development Coalition.
