The
Department of the Interior has greenlit the Atlantic Shores South offshore wind
energy project, marking the nation’s ninth
commercial-scale offshore wind energy project under President Biden’s
administration.
The
approval brings the total approved offshore wind capacity to over 13 gigawatts,
equivalent to powering nearly five million homes.
The Atlantic Shores South wind
project will include two wind energy facilities, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind
Project 1 and 2, which
will generate up to 2,800 megawatts of electricity, enough to power nearly one
million homes. Situated approximately 8.7 miles offshore New Jersey, the project
will feature up to 200 wind turbine generators and up to ten offshore
substations, with subsea transmission cables potentially making landfall in
Atlantic City and Sea Girt, New Jersey. BOEM has approved the construction of
up to 195 wind turbine generators.
Since the Biden-Harris administration
took office, BOEM has conducted four offshore wind energy lease sales and
announced up to 12 additional lease sales through 2028. The approval of the Atlantic Shores
South project is backed by a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
that analyzed potential environmental impacts and incorporated feedback from
public meetings and consultations.
“The Biden-Harris administration is
building momentum every day for our clean energy future, and today’s milestone is yet
another step toward our ambitious goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore
energy by 2030,” stated Secretary Deb Haaland.