Report Says Off-Shore Wind Could Power New Jersey 4x Over

Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center

Trenton – From Maine to Florida, the winds blowing off the Atlantic Coast could be the power source for a clean energy future, according to a report, Wind Power to Spare: The Enormous Energy Potential of Atlantic Offshore Wind, released by Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center.
On Monday, the Jersey Renews coalition and the Business Network for Off-Shore Wind are co-sponsoring the second annual Time For Turbines off-shore wind forum in Atlantic City at the Atlantic County Utility Authority (ACUA), home to the state’s largest on-shore wind facility, that will include all of the state’s off-shore wind developers, key state decision-makers, labor partners, Rutgers, environmental leaders, BPU President Joseph Fiordaliso and Senate President Steve Sweeney.

The Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center report found:

• Winds blowing off the Atlantic coast could provide four times more electricity each year than the region currently uses, and 12 of the 14 coastal states have offshore wind potential that exceeds their current electricity consumption, including New Jersey.
• New Jersey is the top state in the country for off-shore wind because we have more offshore wind planned in terms of total capacity than any other state. If built, these projects off the Jersey Shore would supply electricity equivalent to seven times the annual electricity use of Newark.
• Even if these 14 states converted all activities currently powered by gasoline, natural gas and other fossil fuels (such as transportation and home heating) to electricity, the energy provided by offshore wind turbines could still produce twice as much power as they would use. New Jersey has a ratio of 3.7 to 1.6 for our current off-shore wind potential compared to our current electricity consumption and estimated electrified heat and transportation consumption,

“We’re facing rising seas, intensifying storms, and unprecedented health threats because we’ve relied so long on dirty energy sources,” said Doug O’Malley, director of Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center.  “But sitting right here next to us is the Atlantic Ocean, and its winds provide a massive source of clean, renewable energy. Under Gov. Murphy, New Jersey is jumpstarting our off-shore wind industry and we have the chance to finally harness the wind and our clean energy potential.”

While offshore wind is a proven technology overseas, it has been slow to take off in the United States. To date, only one wind farm is operating in the U.S., off the coast of Rhode Island. Meanwhile, Europe hosts 4,100 offshore wind turbines that supply enough electricity to power more than 20 million homes each day. But more American offshore wind is on the horizon. Thirteen leased offshore wind projects are now moving forward in the U.S., including two in New Jersey, which could provide enough electricity to power approximately 5.2 million homes. Gov. Murphy, through an executive order, committed New Jersey to reach 3,500 MW by 2030, which leapsfrogs Massachusetts and New York.

“The Outer Continental Shelf off the Eastern U.S. is one of the most productive offshore wind areas on earth,” said Business Network for Offshore Wind Executive Director Liz Burdock. “If we apply the lessons learned from the European offshore wind industry, we can produce enough clean electricity to power millions of homes in the next 10 to 20 years. As the host of this year’s IPF offshore wind conference, New Jersey is perfectly positioned to quickly regain its leadership role on offshore wind energy and become a national model for states up and down the Eastern seaboard. Governor Murphy has already demonstrated that he intends to achieve his goal of 3500 MW by 2030.”

Advances in technology and declining costs, coupled with growing concern about the environmental impacts of fossil fuels, has contributed to the recent momentum.

• The turbines at the nation’s first offshore wind project in Rhode Island produce 30 times more electricity each year than the first offshore wind turbines installed in Denmark in the early 1990s.   
• According to the asset management firm Lazard, the overall cost of new offshore wind has declined by 25% in the last 5 years. Estimates by Bloomberg New Energy Finance predict the cost will decline by an additional 71 percent by 2040.

“Offshore wind off the Atlantic coast has the potential to power our communities for decades to come,” said Matthew Morrissey, Vice President for Deepwater Wind, which built the nation’s first offshore wind project off the coast of Rhode Island. “We’re ready to get to work to make affordable offshore wind energy a reality up and down the East Coast and to build a new local industry we can all be proud of.”

The Atlantic Coast, with its shallow waters and millions of people living close to shore, is especially well-suited for wind power. And, because there are no fuel costs, offshore wind power pays for itself in the long term. But a strong commitment from state policy-makers is critical, because adopting this clean energy source will require significant upfront investment in manufacturing and erecting the wind turbines and laying transmission lines. Recognizing this, Gov. Murphy and other governors in New York, Massachusetts, Maryland and Connecticut have established ambitious but feasible targets. If they meet these cumulative targets, offshore wind will provide enough electricity to power 3 million homes.

“Atlantic coastal states use more than a quarter of the nation’s energy,” said Gideon Weissman of Frontier Group, report co-author. “Offshore wind is the ideal resource for states like New Jersey – it’s clean, it’s renewable, and it’s conveniently located near our biggest cities.”

In January 2018, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed an executive order for the state to build 3,500 MW of offshore wind by 2030.  The order led to the Board of Public Utilities issuing a solicitation for 1,100 MW of offshore wind under New Jersey’s Offshore Wind Economic Development Act (OWEDA), which was passed in 2010 but never implemented. The current off-shore wind leases through Orsted and U.S. Wind for New Jersey have a combined capacity of 4,173 MW and will be able to power more than 1.5 million homes.

“We’re seeing the signs of a race to the top on offshore wind, with states adopting increasingly bold goals,” O’Malley said. “New Jersey is leading the way and this report bolsters the Murphy Administration’s aggressive off-shore wind goals ahead of the Time For Turbines forum.”

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