This is an extract from a recent report “The Road to 30 Gigawatts: Key Actions To Scale an Offshore Wind Industry in the United States” published by The Center for American Progress and authored by Teresa R. Christopher, Miriam Goldstein, Mike Williams and Alexandra Carter

To ensure the United States is set up for a sustainable future that supports local communities, creates good jobs, and minimizes impacts on the environment, the country needs a thriving offshore wind industry.

Introduction and summary

In April 2021, the United States set an ambitious climate target of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, a 100 percent carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035, and a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. To reach these lofty climate goals, U.S. leaders should look to the ocean for climate solutions. The ocean is an important part of addressing climate change: It already absorbs 25 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions and captures 90 percent of the additional heat generated from those emissions. With climate impacts becoming ever more present, the ocean will serve as a key source of drinking water through desalination and food as supplies become scarcer. The ocean will also provide clean, renewable energy, including wave, tidal, floating solar, and—most notably—offshore wind. Stronger and more consistent than onshore wind, offshore wind has huge potential to make up a significant portion of the U.S. clean energy mix. In fact, offshore wind could provide more than 2,000 gigawatts (GW) of energy in the United States—two times the present generation of the entire U.S. electric grid.

Achieving these goals will require federal leadership and decisive action. The Biden administration has taken laudable, early actions to advance offshore wind by setting a national offshore wind goal of 30 GW by 2030 and has begun to address the bottlenecks in leasing and permitting projects made worse during the Trump administration. However, a lot more will be required to achieve these goals in a way that creates good, union jobs and long-term economic sustainability; minimizes impacts to a fragile marine environment; and balances other uses of the ocean. Big-picture thinking; strategic leadership; fortitude in coordination across agencies and jurisdictions; and deliberate upfront investments in infrastructure and science are essential to allow the industry to rapidly deploy and scale toward a long-term vision for what Americans want the ocean, the industry, and its economic ecosystem to look like in 20 to 30 years.

Comparatively, Europe’s offshore wind industry is considerably more advanced with three decades of experience putting turbines in the water. As of 2020, Europe had more than 5,400 turbines in the water with an overall generation capacity of more than 25 GW. European countries have coordinated across national boundaries to integrate offshore wind into the grid. They have worked together to minimize environmental impacts, begun to standardize interfaces and technologies, and created interconnecting offshore wind clusters. They have built the expertise, supply chains, and workforce to support this growing industry. In 2020 alone, more than $31.7 billion of investments were made in new offshore wind assets in Europe. In addition, European countries have advanced forward-looking offshore grid concepts such as the North Sea Wind Power Hub. While the European offshore wind industry is a couple decades ahead, the United States has the ability to learn from Europe’s successes and mistakes. The Biden administration has an opportunity right now to implement a big-picture, forward-looking vision and intentionally design the large-scale system—that is, an offshore grid, ports, and domestic supply chains—and regional economic hubs that will create tens of thousands of good jobs and minimize environmental impacts. However, the window to take deliberate actions to set the course for how the industry will scale is quickly closing.

The current state of offshore wind in the United States 

The offshore wind industry in the United States crawled forward for more than a decade, slowed by litigation, protracted permitting, complex and novel regulatory frameworks, stakeholder opposition, and unfavorable energy markets. As of 2021, there were only two operational offshore wind projects in U.S. waters with a total of seven turbines. The Block Island Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island became operational in 2016 with five turbines that generate approximately 30 megawatts (MW). A second project, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind pilot project—a 12 MW wind farm off the coast of Virginia—became operational in June 2020 and consists of only two turbines in federal waters. Although there are currently only seven turbines in U.S. waters, there are around 20 proposed offshore wind projects in various stages of development with a projected pipeline of 30 GW in federal lease areas issued to date. Projects take approximately four to eight years from the sale of lease to an operational farm, but many have taken longer, and some—such as the Cape Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts—never make it past concept. Yet, in November 2021, Vineyard Wind, the first commercial-scale offshore wind project in the United States, began construction off the coast of Massachusetts—a positive indicator that the atmosphere has changed. In fact, developers currently anticipate approximately 9 GW to be operational by 2026.

The regulatory framework for offshore wind in the United States is governed by federal, state, and local governments. At the federal level, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is responsible for offshore wind development, including lease sales, easements, rights of way in federal waters, and coordinated permitting activity. The U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) is responsible for offshore wind safety, environmental enforcement, and compliance functions. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is responsible for interstate wholesale sales of electricity and for electric transmission. Various other agencies have authority with respect to different permitting aspects of projects. For example, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permit impacts on certain protected species under various statutes, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits obstructions to navigation and all permits for projects in the Great Lakes under the Rivers and Harbors Act. At the state level, state governments oversee generation, distribution, retail sales, public utility commission approvals, and energy solicitations. They are also instrumental in the regional transmission organizations (RTOs) and independent system operators (ISOs) that operate electric grids in much of the country. The states also have a regulatory role under the Coastal Zone Management Act to ensure projects are consistent with state coastal zone management programs and regulations. Local governments and local laws have a role in siting and establishing interconnections to the onshore grid.

Until 2021, the offshore wind industry in the United States has largely been driven by state renewable energy goals and offshore wind targets. Eight East Coast states alone have set targets totaling 37 GW. These targets, along with state policies and procurements, have helped to dictate the timing and ability for the industry to grow by providing some market predictability.

States have also been leading the way to create long-term economic opportunities from the offshore wind industry. This has come in the form of job creation, manufacturing, port development, and infrastructure investments. Through requirements and incentives in state procurements of offshore wind and general economic incentives, states have been able to attract further economic investments from the industry. For example, New Jersey established the New Jersey Wind Port on the eastern shore of the Delaware River, the first facility purposefully built for staging, assembly, and manufacturing activities related to offshore wind projects. In Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) launched a new public-private partnership to upgrade the Port of New London to support the ships and cargo necessary to construct offshore wind installations. In Massachusetts, a group of investors has converted the former site of a coal-fired plant into a hub that will “provide manufacturing, logistics, and transmission in support of offshore wind facilities.” And in New York, an $86 million supply chain contract to construct components for wind turbines at the Port of Coeymans spurred the state to offer significant port infrastructure and supply chain investment in its next offshore wind solicitation in early 2022, an effort to further maximize long-term economic benefits.

In addition, states are working together to create regional economic hubs. Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina formed the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic Regional Transformative Partnership for Offshore Wind Energy Resources to foster a more favorable investment environment. The partnership will enhance interstate coordination; clarify, streamline and align state requirements; and facilitate sharing of best practices to reduce administrative burdens on project developers as well as reduce project costs. State and interstate leadership has sparked investment by the private sector. Already, Dominion Energy has agreed to lease 72 acres of the Portsmouth Marine Terminal in Virginia for staging and to serve as a preassembly area for the foundations and turbines, and Siemens Gamesa, a wind engineering company, recently announced plans to invest $200 million at the terminal to establish the first offshore wind turbine blade facility in the United States. This is an initial step in developing the terminal into an offshore wind hub and a strong indication that global manufacturers are investing in establishing U.S.-based supply chains.

In 2021 and 2022, the United States witnessed renewed leadership and funding at the federal level. The Biden administration has taken notable steps to advance offshore wind. In March 2021, the Biden administration set the first national goal for offshore wind with a target of 30 GW by 2030. It also brought together multiple agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Transportation (DOT) to focus resources on this top priority. The first major lease sale under this goal in the New York Bight took place in February 2022 and generated a record $4.37 billion in winning bids. As part of this renewed focus, the administration announced $230 million for port and intermodal infrastructure-related projects through the DOT’s Port Infrastructure Development Program, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021 will provide an additional $450 million annually through 2036 to support the offshore wind industry. The administration also announced access to $3 billion in debt capital through the DOE Loan Program Office to support offshore wind transmission developers, suppliers, and other financing partners to scale the industry in the United States. The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) identified the blue economy as an area of interest in its $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge as part of the American Rescue Plan. Further, NOAA’s Northeast Sea Grant program made $1 million in grant funding available for community-based research in the Northeast. This investment will increase understanding of the effects of offshore renewable energy on the ocean and local communities and economies as well as opportunities to optimize ocean co-use. On the regulatory side, the administration has prioritized streamlining the various permitting processes for offshore wind through the Federal Permitting Improvement and Steering Council.

Challenges still ahead

While the Biden administration has given the industry some much-needed momentum, several barriers and challenges still exist. Two of the most significant by far are stakeholder opposition and lack of adequate transmission infrastructure. Additional challenges due to limited science, a nascent domestic supply chain, significant workforce needs, and technological limitations also exist. Furthermore, several issues have been exacerbated by project-by-project thinking. Stakeholder engagement, user conflicts, effects on the environment, and transmission have all been hampered by attempting to address these issues on a project-specific basis without accounting for the big picture.

With less than three years remaining in the Biden administration’s first term and the offshore wind industry in an early growth stage, there is still an opportunity to establish the U.S. wind industry in a strategic way. However, the time is now—and it is crucial for the administration to move with deliberate speed and forethought.

The United States has an opportunity right now to set up an offshore wind industry that not only brings the nation closer to its ambitious climate goals but creates good, union jobs and bolsters the economy. Yet policymakers must think long-term and big picture. To ensure it is scaling the industry in a smart way, the Biden administration should take additional near-term steps to advance policies and deploy resources that will allow strategic growth of offshore wind while ensuring the ocean and its resources are healthy and thriving for years to come. It should actively set the direction for supply chain and workforce growth and implement a forward-looking transmission plan. With large investments already being made—and due to the long lead time for projects—there is no time to waste.

The complete report can be accessed here