Vineyard Offshore Retreats From Major Wind Project

Meanwhile,  the   turbine problems of the summer seem to be a thing of the past/ GE Vernova informed Nantucket Select Board Chair Brooke Mohr at 4:10 p.m. Friday that Vineyard Wind would begin installing blades again on Saturday, "with work continuing throughout the weekend."

Colin A. Young| SHNS

While one wind project celebrated a resumption of work following a long suspension, another proposed offshore wind project is now off the table.

Vineyard Offshore confirmed Friday afternoon that it is pulling the 800 megawatts that Massachusetts had selected from its 1,200 MW Vineyard Wind 2 project back from contract negotiations, saying the deal with Massachusetts was conditioned on Connecticut buying the remaining 400 MW.

"We were proud to submit our Vineyard Wind 2 proposal in response to the New England three-state solicitation, and we are grateful to Massachusetts for its provisional award of 800 MW. With Connecticut’s decision today not to purchase the remaining 400 MW we are unable to contract the project’s full 1200 MW at this time," Vineyard Offshore spokesperson Kathryn Niforos told the News Service. "We look forward to advancing this project and participating in future solicitations to meet the region’s growing energy needs while spurring economic investment and creating thousands of American energy jobs."

Officials in Connecticut announced earlier Friday that their state selected new solar and electric storage projects, but not any new offshore wind projects, in its latest procurement round. Connecticut had been expected to participate in a tri-state wind procurement along with Massachusetts and Rhode Island, but did not buy into any projects when bids were announced earlier this year.

Massachusetts in September selected 1,087 MW of the 1,287 MW SouthCoast Wind project, with the remaining 200 MW going to Rhode Island. Massachusetts also chose to take the entire 791 MW New England Wind 1 project. The Bay State also selected up to 800 MW of the 1,200 MW Vineyard Wind 2 project at the same time. The process has been delayed repeatedly and contracts are expected to be finalized by Jan. 15 and filed for Department of Public Utilities approval by Feb. 25.

Through the previous three rounds of bidding, Massachusetts had procured a total of 3,200 MW of capacity from offshore wind power: 800 MW from Vineyard Wind 1 in 2017, a cumulative 1,200 MW from SouthCoast Wind split between 2019 and 2021 procurement rounds, and 1,200 MW from Commonwealth Wind in 2021.

But 75 percent of the power in the pipeline was eliminated when Commonwealth Wind and SouthCoast Wind scrapped their contracts last year citing shifting economic conditions that made the projects no longer financially viable at the prices they previously negotiated.

Despite the state's significant moves to procure the cleaner energy generation since 2016, Vineyard Wind 1 is the only project Massachusetts has in its offshore wind pipeline and that project has been on a turbulent ride.

"Offshore wind is critical to promoting affordability, meeting our increasing electricity need, and securing our energy independence. We look forward to advancing the region’s next offshore wind projects and continuing to grow our competitive edge in this global industry with domestic manufacturing, dedicated port infrastructure, and thousands of good jobs," Maria Hardiman, spokesperson for the Department of Energy Resources, said in a statement.

The Healey administration confirmed Friday afternoon that the state's selection of Vineyard Wind 2 was contingent on the project securing an agreement with a buyer for the remaining 400 MW of capacity. When the selection was announced in September, it was framed as a possibility but not necessarily a condition.

"My hope is that they buy in at some point, there's certainly capacity and opportunity for them to buy in," Gov. Maura Healey said. "Certainly welcome Connecticut's involvement. I mean, I know it's a good deal for Massachusetts, and that's why we're doing it."

State officials have relied upon the development of a robust offshore wind industry as a primary strategy for meeting Massachusetts' decarbonization commitments, and it is seen as a sector that could provide an array of new jobs for residents. But projects have repeatedly been delayed, costs have increased significantly in the meantime and the incoming president has long been an antagonist of the wind industry.

If the other two contracts under negotiation are finalized, the state will have 2,678 MW in its pipeline, less than half of the way towards the statutory target to procure 5,600 MW of offshore wind by 2027. Officials from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs reiterated Friday that the state plans to launch another offshore wind solicitation in 2025.

Also Friday, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced that it had approved the SouthCoast Wind project, which is negotiating with Massachusetts and Rhode Island utilities over a combined 1,200 MW from a potential maximum of 2,400 MW when fully developed. It is the 11th offshore wind project to be approved by the Biden administration, and potentially the last.

SouthCoast Wind's bid document referred to the 1,200 MW for Massachusetts and Rhode Island as a "fully bankable project ready to start construction in 2025" and project officials have said they anticipate being able to deliver power in 2030.

Industry players said late last year that they were "laser focused" on getting projects as far down the permitting road as possible before 2025, to make it more difficult for a potential second Trump administration to stymie them.