As the US offshore wind energy industry takes precautions to keep business moving amid the coronavirus outbreak, its annual market report describes how the White House can act now to claim the U.S. share of an emerging US$ 1 trillion global market by 2040 to assist in the economic recovery. The Business Network for Offshore Wind publishes this report annually for its members on the state of the U.S. market.
It includes state-by-state capacity procurements, increases in government targets, project timelines, and the latest industry developments. Among its insights are:
- Power prices are consistently falling in the American offshore wind industry, paralleling the European experience
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Close to 10GW of offshore wind power capacity are in the development phase and projected to go into operation in the US by 2028
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94 contracts have already been given in the past few years in the US offshore industry. They are listed in the report, along with forecasts of over 60 ocean vessels soon to be required for crew transfer and service operations
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A different business model is emerging. Dominion Energy is not using the European model of a third-party developer, but an American model of an experienced US utility with regulatory experience, now pursuing a large scale project off Virginia
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Offshore wind will move into Federal waters this year, with Dominion’s 12MW, two-turbine Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind pilot project, which will provide the local supply chain with experience and build intergovernmental understanding and cooperation
- Grid operators must address onshore electric transmission bottlenecks – such as with open-access shared high-voltage lines and grid interconnections – or the U.S. could lose further billions of dollars of investment by the offshore supply chain if it is unable to build new capacity beyond 10GW
