First West Coast Offshore Wind Auction Tests Appetite for Floating Farms

By Nichola Groom

Dec 6 (Reuters) – The United States on Tuesday kicked off the first sale of offshore wind development rights for waters off the coast of California, expanding the nascent domestic industry to the Pacific Ocean.

The auction, which began at 10 a.m. ET (1500 GMT), is a major milestone in the Biden administration’s push to put wind turbines along every U.S. coastline to help decarbonize the grid and fight climate change. 

Projects could one day power 1.5 million homes, according to the Department of Interior, and are a key part of California’s efforts to wean its power sector off fossil fuels by 2045.

The sale also puts the United States, which has lagged Europe in development of offshore wind farms, at the forefront of the expansion of floating turbines, an emerging technology needed when the depth of the ocean precludes the use of standard, fixed equipment.

Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will auction five lease areas equal to a combined 373,267 acres (151,056 hectares) off the state’s north and central coasts.

Previous federal offshore wind auctions have all been for leases in shallower waters of the Atlantic Ocean. BOEM held two auctions earlier this year, including one that drew a record $4.37 billion in high bids, mainly from European energy companies, for development rights off New York and New Jersey.

The California sale is viewed as a test of industry appetite for investing in floating offshore wind technology, which to date has been limited to small pilot projects in places including Norway and Portugal.

Companies approved to bid at the auction include established offshore wind players like Avangrid Inc, Orsted and Equinor, which are all developing projects on the U.S. East Coast. 

But the list of 43 potential bidders also includes local entities such as California developer Castle Wind and the Redwood Coast Energy Authority, a government agency in northern Humboldt County.

(Reporting by Nichola GroomEditing by Bill Berkrot and Lisa Shumaker)

Unlock Exclusive Insights Today!

Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and vibrant community discussions.

Sign Up