he first offshore wind farm in the United States is scheduled to begin operations this month off the coast of Rhode Island — a small but notable step forward, given that other offshore projects have run into stiff headwinds this side of the Atlantic. The five turbines that make up the Block Island Wind Farm will generate 30 megawatts of electricity — enough to power 17,000 homes on average.
It is a surprise (and frustration) to many that the facilities have not cropped up sooner, considering the potential that offshore wind has to reduce long-term dependence on fossil fuels — and to add new power options for coastal cities with limited real estate. In fact, offshore wind has taken off in Europe, producing a total of 11.5 gigawatts a year. Analysts put the United States’ potential at more than 2,000 gigawatts, which is almost double the current electricity use in this country. Yet efforts to launch offshore wind power have fallen short for myriad reasons. For one, electricity distributors have had little reason to pay the higher costs compared with cheaper onshore power sources, such as natural gas and hydroelectric plants. “There is a graveyard of U.S. offshore wind projects that have died after failing to secure a contract for the purchase of its electricity,” said Alex Morgan, a wind energy analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. It does not help that developers currently have to import expensive turbines from Europe or Asia because there is not a homegrown supply chain.
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