It would double the size of Ocean Wind 1 off the coast of southern New Jersey
Editor’s note: See related stories in this edition and elsewhere on ocnjsentinel.com about wind power, its opponents and proponents.
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
OCEAN CITY – Danish company Ørsted announced Wednesday, June 30, that is has been selected for a second wind farm project that would double the amount of energy the company is planning to produce off the coast of Atlantic and Cape May counties.
While there is considerable support for clean wind energy from both New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and President Joe Biden and their supporters, some officials and local residents have been fighting to stop the original Ocean Wind project. (See related stories.) Ørsted wants to connect its original Ocean Wind project to the southern New Jersey power grid by running transmission lines through Ocean City on the way to the former B.L. England generating plan in Beesleys Point, Upper Township. The other lines would go to the former Oyster Creek nuclear plant in Ocean County.
Some Ocean City Council members and a grassroots organization, protectourcoastnj.com, are opposing Ocean Wind. They are sure to also oppose Ocean Wind 2.
Officials for Ørsted, which is going through a two-year environment review phase for its initial project, Ocean Wind (now called Ocean Wind 1), said on Wednesday the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) selected Ocean Wind 2 for a 20-year Offshore Renewable Energy Credit.
Ocean Wind is an 1,100 megawatt wind farm featuring up to 99 turbines some 853-feet-tall in a lease area starting 15 miles off the coast, stretching from north of Atlantic City to close to Stone Harbor.
According to a release from Ørsted Wednesday, Ocean Wind 2 is an 1,148 megawatt project “to develop the remaining portion of its Ocean Wind federal lease area and will power more than half a million New Jersey homes. Ocean Wind 2 will be located adjacent to the company’s first offshore wind project, Ocean Wind (“Ocean Wind 1”).
The BPU awarded the initial Ocean Wind in 2019.
“Ocean Wind 1 is being developed in partnership with Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG), which owns 25 percent equity in the project,” company officials said.
The release continued, “Ocean Wind 2 will play a significant role in helping the state reach Governor Murphy’s goals of installing 7,500 MW of offshore wind capacity by 2035 and 100 percent clean energy by 2050. Together, Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 will deliver over 2,200 MW of offshore wind to the Garden State.”
“With the selection of Ocean Wind 2, New Jersey is now firmly at the heart of the American offshore wind industry,” David Hardy, CEO Ørsted Offshore North America, said in the release. “We thank the BPU and Governor Murphy for having the confidence in Ørsted to deliver over 2,000 MW of offshore wind energy, and for further strengthening the partnership between our company and the Garden State. We’re thrilled to grow this global industry alongside the State of New Jersey, as well as help all communities in the State benefit from the offshore wind industry.”
The company said Ørsted’s proposed Ocean Wind 2 will help expanding the Paulsboro monopile facility under construction to support the wind farms planned off the coast of southern New Jersey. According to Ørsted, the facility on the Delaware Bay “will be home to 500 full-time jobs and represents an investment of $250 million into southern New Jersey. Additionally, Ocean Wind 2 will generate over $4.8 billion in net economic benefits for the State of New Jersey, helping to further develop a strong domestic supply chain.”