The administration of President Joe Biden wants to know if offshore wind companies want to venture into the Gulf of Mexico.
The Interior Department announced Tuesday that the office in charge of offshore leases will publish a request for interest in the Federal Register on Friday for areas off the coasts of Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Those areas are primarily in shallower waters, where numerous wells have been completed, rather than the deep seas, where the Gulf’s offshore oil and gas sector is presently concentrated.
Biden has stated that he hopes to have enough wind-generated electricity to power more than 10 million homes by 2030.
According to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, offshore wind development has the potential to produce tens of thousands of good-paying union jobs across the country.
Her agency’s request for developer interest is “a vital The first step to see what role the Gulf may play in this fascinating frontier,” she says.
National Ocean Industries Association
“The Gulf of Mexico is extremely well-positioned for the exploration of new offshore technologies and energy opportunities,” said Erik Milito, president of the National Ocean Industries Association, which includes companies building both wind and oil and gas facilities offshore.
“Whether we are talking about offshore wind or other renewables such as hydrogen, expanding the energy portfolio of the Gulf of Mexico will depend upon a robust offshore oil and gas industry,” he said in an emailed statement.
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
According to Milito, offshore oil and gas corporations are constructing wind farms in the Atlantic. He anticipates that the government initiative will arouse interest, but that corporations will need time to analyze and comprehend the market.
Although wind energy is the primary focus, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is also looking for information on other renewable energy technologies, according to the Interior Department.
$3 Billion In Loan, Guarantees Are Available To Help Offshore Businesses.
The Department of Energy has $3 billion in loan guarantees available to assist offshore wind as part of the Biden administration’s quest for renewable energy. It has also allocated $500 million to enhance the ports from which the massive turbines would be transported out to sea.
Last month, California and the United States reached an agreement to allow the Pacific coast’s first commercial wind energy farms, which would use floating turbines, to be built off the state’s shore.
In March, the Interior Department released a four-volume environmental impact assessment for a massive wind farm proposed off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. That was an important step toward deciding whether to allow the nation’s first commercial-scale offshore wind generating facility.
