Five million dollars in federal funding for the National Deepwater Offshore Research Center at the University of Maine has been included in the Energy and Water Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2010, which passed the Senate by a vote of 85 to 9.
‘Developing deepwater offshore wind technology can transform the way we generate energy to power the planet, and Maine is uniquely poised to be a leader in this effort,’ says Olympia Snowe R-Maine.
Earlier this year, Snowe, joined by the entire Maine congressional delegation and Gov. John Baldacci, met with the Secretary of Energy Steven Chu regarding this initiative.
The goal of the National Deepwater Offshore Wind Research Center would be to enable the design and testing of a large-scale, floating, offshore wind platform that could serve as the basis of a large-scale offshore wind industry.
The Senate-passed Energy and Water Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2010 will be reconciled with the House-passed bill and has to be voted on by both chambers.
SOURCE: Office of Sen. Olympia J. Snowe
