(OW) The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has completed a draft environmental assessment (EA) of the potential issuance of a research lease to the State of Maine that would grant the State the exclusive right to submit plans for a twelve-turbine, 144 MW floating wind farm for BOEM’s approval. The federal agency is... Continue Reading →
US President Biden to Announce Gulf of Mexico Offshore Wind Lease Sale
US President Joe Biden will announce today the first-ever Gulf of Mexico offshore wind lease sale as part of his administration’s efforts to boost renewable energy, according to the White House. Today, the Department of the Interior (DOI) is issuing the final sale notice for the first-ever offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf of... Continue Reading →
Column: Brazil’s hydropower relieves European gas squeeze
(Reuters) - Brazil has increased hydroelectric generation to near-record rates in 2022 and 2023 – reducing the need to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) and freeing cargoes to be redirected to ease the gas shortage in Europe. Brazil’s total electrical generation rose by +21 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) to a record 677 billion kWh in 2022,... Continue Reading →
Australian offshore wind project moves forward despite lack of licence
(OET) Flotation Energy has signed a multi-million-dollar deal to start environmental surveys in the Bass Strait region in Australia despite licences for potential offshore wind projects not being awarded until later this year. Flotation Energy signed a USD 22 million contract with RPS to commence its two-and-a-half-year programme of environmental surveys for the 1.5 GW... Continue Reading →
Avangrid Terminates Long-Fought PPAs in Massachusetts at Cost of Almost USD 50 Million
(OW) Massachusetts’s electric distribution companies Eversource Energy, National Grid and Unitil have agreed to terminate their power purchase agreements (PPAs) for the Commonwealth Wind offshore wind farm at the request of the project developer, Iberdrola-owned Avangrid, which will pay USD 48 million in penalties for the termination that is yet to be approved by the... Continue Reading →
Portugal Raises Offshore Wind Ambitions
(Reuters) Portugal has increased its ambitions for offshore wind energy and has sharply raised its target for a first auction of offshore floating windfarm licenses, Environment Minister Duarte Cordeiro told Reuters on Tuesday. Cordeiro said the sale, due to take place by the end of the year, will target a total installed capacity of between... Continue Reading →
Brazil raked in US$12.9 billion in signing bonuses for 15 pre-salt blocks – Report
(ON) Brazil was able to cop a total of US$12.882 billion in signing bonuses from 15 block awards in its pre-salt area since the state-owned Petrobras made the first discovery back in 2006. This is according to the recent Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) report. The pre-salt is a sequence of... Continue Reading →
Curaçao starts offshore surveys with plan for floating wind-to-hydrogen production
(OET) Fugro’s survey vessel Fugro Brasilis has arrived at the Port of Willemstad in Curaçao ahead of offshore surveys the company will perform as the Curaçao government is working on identifying areas for floating wind development. The work, scheduled to start today (17 July) and take place until 29 July, follows a memorandum of understanding... Continue Reading →
Floating Wind Farm Surveys Start Off the Coast of Wales and South West England
(OE) Plans for floating wind farm development off the coast of Wales and South West England are progressing as the first specialist survey vessel embarks on a 100-day mission from Swansea. With a crew of 30, the vessel will use towed and hull-mounted sensors to gather geophysical data on the properties of the seabed and... Continue Reading →
Portugal Zooms In on Three Offshore Wind Areas with 3.5 GW Capacity for Upcoming Auction
An inter-ministerial working group on offshore wind set up by the Portuguese government as part of the process of organising the country’s first offshore wind tender has narrowed down the initially identified areas to three that would be offered for development later this year. As reported at the beginning of this year, the working group... Continue Reading →