The Revolution Wind project has been granted approval by the US Department of the Interior (DOI). Positioned approximately 15 nautical miles to the southeast of Point Judith, Rhode Island, this project is poised to generate around 704MW of clean energy, with the potential to supply electricity to nearly 250,000 households.
Anticipated to foster the creation of about 1,200 local employment opportunities during its construction phase, this development signifies a significant stride towards realising US President Biden’s objective of establishing 30GW of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030.
US Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland said: “President Biden has set an ambitious goal of achieving 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030 – and I am more confident than ever that we will meet it. Together with industry, labour and partners from coast to coast, we are building an entirely new industry off the east and west and Gulf coasts.
“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.
“Today’s approval is not the end of our work on this project. 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.”
Since President Biden assumed office, 18 projects focused on constructing offshore wind shipbuilding have been announced by various companies.
Additionally, investments totalling almost $3.5bn have been committed to enhancing 12 manufacturing facilities and 13 ports. These endeavours are pivotal in fortifying the supply chain for American offshore wind initiatives and consequently generating a substantial number of job opportunities.
With today’s significant achievement, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is maintaining its trajectory towards completing assessments for a minimum of 16 offshore wind projects by the year 2025. These projects collectively represent an impressive clean energy capacity of over 27GW.
Following a meticulous evaluation of the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) alternatives, which encompassed the valuable input from the public on the draft EIS, the Department has granted its approval to the Construction and Operations Plan (COP) for the Revolution Wind project.
This approval aligns with the Department’s preferred Alternative G, as identified and thoroughly examined in the EIS. This selected course of action balances energy requirements while mitigating the impact on visual aspects, benthic habitats, and other ocean users. Alternative G outlines the potential for up to 79 locations for the installation of 65 wind turbines and two offshore substations within the designated lease area.
