Biden administration approves fourth commercial-scale offshore wind project

by Zack Budryk - 08/22/23 12:48 PM ET

Land-based windmills turn in the wind in Atlantic City, N.J., on April 28, 2022. On July 3, 2023, Atlantic Shores, the approved developer of New Jersey's third offshore wind farm, said it, too, wants a tax break or other financial assistance, hinting that its project might not be able to be done without the kind of assistance New Jersey lawmakers granted the week before to a competitor, Orsted, which has approval to build two of the state's three approved offshore wind farms. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry) — Land-based windmills turn in the wind in Atlantic City, N.J., on April 28, 2022. AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

The Biden administration on Tuesday approved a wind energy project off Rhode Island, the fourth major commercial-scale offshore wind energy project approved by the Biden Interior Department.

The Revolution Wind project is set to be located about 15 nautical miles southeast of the town of Point Judith, with a projected capacity of just more than 700 megawatts, the Interior Department said in an announcement Tuesday. It follows previously announced projects off Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey as well as another approved project off Rhode Island.

The administration has set a goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power capacity by the end of the decade, part of a broader goal of cutting U.S. carbon emissions in half by 2030. By the middle of the 2030s, the administration aims to deploy another 15 gigawatts of offshore wind through the use of floating turbines.

In a statement, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said she is “more confident than ever” that the U.S. will achieve the wind power goal.

“The Interior Department is committed to the Biden-Harris administration’s all-of-government approach to the clean energy future and delivering clean, reliable renewable energy to help respond to the climate crisis, lower energy costs, and create good-paying union jobs across the manufacturing, shipbuilding and construction sectors,” Haaland said. “We will continue to maintain open communication and frequent collaboration with federal partners, Tribal Nations, states, industry and ocean users to address potential challenges to and identify opportunities for the continued success of the U.S. offshore wind industry.”

The administration’s goals for wind power installation call for eventual installations along both the east and west coasts and the Gulf of Mexico. In February, the Interior Department announced its first offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf, opening more than 300,000 acres for bid. An earlier lease sale for wind installation in the New York Bight brought a record $4.37 billion.

Tags Deb Haaland Joe Biden