US Gulf of Maine offshore wind auction poses test for beleaguered industry

By Nichola Groom

(Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s administration on Tuesday will kick off a sale of offshore wind development rights for eight areas off the coasts of northern New England, a key test of industry appetite for new investment after a year of high-profile setbacks.

The auction of nearly 1 million acres (404,680 hectares) in the Gulf of Maine is the last planned before Biden, a Democrat, leaves office in January. Former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate in next week’s presidential election, has vowed to stop offshore wind projects if he defeats Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 election.

Biden has made offshore wind a cornerstone of his plan to decarbonize the electricity grid by 2035. But soaring costs, supply chain challenges and a construction accident have slowed development and cast doubt on his administration’s target to install 30 gigawatts of offshore wind this decade.

The areas available for leasing in the Gulf of Maine — off the coasts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine — have the potential for enough offshore wind energy to power more than 4.5 million homes, according to the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

The U.S. Northeast is an attractive market for offshore wind developers because many states have passed laws mandating procurement of the resource to meet climate change goals. Maine, for instance, has a goal to install 3 GW of offshore wind by 2040. Massachusetts is a leader in offshore wind with a target of 5.6 GW by 2027.

Industry malaise has scuttled two offshore wind auctions this year in the Gulf of Mexico and Oregon, regions without offshore wind mandates.

Development in the Gulf of Maine would give a substantial boost to the use of floating wind turbines, an emerging technology required in the area’s deep waters. By 2035, the U.S. aims to have 15 GW of floating wind along its coastlines in places like California, Oregon and Maine.

A small project to demonstrate the technology is in the works off the coast of Maine.

Divisions of companies including Avangrid (NYSE:), Equinor, TotalEnergies (EPA:), Repsol (OTC:) and Invenergy are among the 14 developers qualified to bid in the auction, according to a BOEM sale notice.

The auction will be held online beginning at 9:00 local time (1300 GMT), and updates will be available on BOEM’s web site.