Offshore wind is a critical strategy towards ushering in our clean energy future. Photo: Shutterstock.
Update 9/6/2024: Massachusetts and Rhode Island have both announced winning bids. Massachusetts will be purchasing a total of 2,678 megawatts of energy from South Coast Wind, Avangrid (New England Wind 1), and Vineyard Offshore (Vineyard Wind 2). Rhode Island will be purchasing a total of 200 megawatts of energy from South Coast Wind. Connecticut has yet to announce its plans.
In the next chapter of New England’s clean energy development, three of the region’s states have agreed to collaborate to build more offshore wind to power our homes and businesses.
Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts are working together to solicit bids from offshore wind developers. Collectively, the amount of electricity the states are buying could power nearly 3.5 million homes.
Companies submitted bids for proposed projects on March 27. Let’s dive into what we know.
We Need to Upgrade How We Generate Electricity
Fossil fuels like oil and gas damage our climate, health, and wallets. This is made worse because New England relies on these fuels to generate electricity. To slow the devastating impacts of climate change and protect our health and finances, we must upgrade to electricity generated by clean sources like offshore wind and solar.
March’s tri-state auction marks a step in the right direction. These new offshore wind projects can and will drastically ramp up how much clean electricity we can generate. That electricity is also more consistent in cost and healthier than price-volatile, toxic fossil fuels.
CLF supports this bidding process because offshore wind is critical to upgrading our energy systems and protecting our loved ones from pollution and climate change. We can’t slow global warming without massively ramping up the clean energy we produce. And slowing climate change means slowing rising sea levels, extreme weather like flood-inducing rainfall, increases in allergies and diseases like Lyme, and much more.
Multiple Companies Have Bid in the Auction – But Details are Vague
Although each state has received bids, the details (including proposed electricity prices) have yet to be released.
Avangrid, Vineyard Wind, SouthCoast Wind, and Orsted are among the companies vying for approval. Proposed projects can encompass all three states, just two of them, or only one. However, the tri–state partnership has indicated a preference for projects that would sell power to all three.
What Comes Next for the Tri-State Offshore Wind Bids
After a thorough review by utility companies and state decision-makers, states are expected to select the winning projects in early August. Around that time, states will reveal more details, including how much companies will charge for electricity. After winning projects are selected, CLF will be involved in the next review process to ensure that these proposed projects are in the best interest of New England’s families, businesses, environment, and economy. We will be tracking these bids as they progress, so stay up to date by signing up for our emails.
