By Jennette Barnes
Posted Aug 23, 2019 at 10:44 AM
Updated Aug 23, 2019 at 11:00 AM
BOSTON – Bay State Wind, a 50/50 joint venture between Danish energy company Ørsted and New England energy company Eversource, has submitted a bid for Massachusetts’ second solicitation for commercial offshore wind.
The proposal, submitted Friday, includes 400-megawatt and 800-megawatt options.
Friday, Aug. 23 is the deadline for confidential bids. By Aug. 30, companies must submit public versions of those bids.
Bay State Wind said its venture, which has been in development since 2015, offers “unmatched project maturity,” has demonstrated a significant willingness to work with the fishing industry and people concerned about marine life, and has committed to making meaningful local investments.
Bay State Wind bid unsuccessfully in the state’s first solicitation in 2017.
“Our project will not only create jobs and provide local investment, it will be delivered by the offshore wind’s leading experts to ensure the project is achievable, sustainable and successful for the commonwealth,” Ørsted’s Thomas Brostrøm said in a news release. Brostrøm is president of Ørsted North America and CEO of Ørsted U.S. Offshore Wind.
Lee Olivier, an executive vice president at Eversource, said, “We are thrilled to once again help Massachusetts take the next step to grow its clean energy economy.”
According to Bay State Wind, the 800-megawatt proposal could generate enough energy for up to 500,000 Massachusetts homes and deliver greenhouse gas reductions equivalent to taking up to 350,000 cars off the road.
Vineyard Wind, which received the first Massachusetts contract, had hoped to begin construction this year on its $2.8 billion, 84-turbine wind farm. A key federal permit was expected in July, but federal officials decided to first conduct a broader review of the potential effects of offshore wind development on the East Coast, creating a delay whose full effect is not yet known.
Original story here.