Intelatus Provides Snapshot of U.S. Offshore Wind Industry Progress

The U.S. offshore wind sector continues its journey to deploy 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 110 GW by 2050, Intelatus Global Partners said in its July U.S. offshore wind report.

Two major OCS projects with around 940 MW of capacity have reached FID and have started onshore construction, and seven projects are expected to make a final investment decision within the next 18 months.

According to Intelatus, 11 OCS developments with a potential for more than 17 GW are undergoing federal permitting review, and 17.5 GW of project capacity has secured offtake commitments from states.

Also, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has launched the leasing process for over 4.5 GW of floating wind capacity offshore California, further auctions are planned for the South Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, the Central Atlantic, Oregon, and the Gulf of Maine before the end of 2024.

Furthermore, an unsolicited request has been submitted to develop a 2 GW floating wind farm in Washington State; turbine component, foundation, and cable factories and Jones Act wind farm vessels are being built in the U.S., and offshore wind port development is accelerating.

70 GW of Offshore Wind in This and Next Decade

Intelatus' forecast accounts for projects that will install close to 70 GW of capacity in this and the next decade. 

The forecast capacity will require capital expenditure amounting to $205 billion to bring onstream, a recurring annual operations and maintenance spend of $7 billion once delivered, and close to $31 billion of decommissioning expenditure at the end of commercial operations:

• Two offshore wind projects have passed the FID stage, have finalized major contract commitments, and have started onshore construction. 
• An FID is expected within the next 18 months for five OCS bottom-fixed project and 2 demonstration projects, one of which is floating wind technology. 
• 17 projects are in the midterm planning stage where an FID is expected between 18 and 36 months. 
• Eight projects are in the early planning stage where an FID is expected to be taken in 36-60 months. 
• Another 16 areas will support close to 17 GW of future offshore wind projects and where an FID is expected after 60 months. 
• There are a further 22 offshore areas at the planning stage in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf of Mexico that will support the longer-term U.S. ambition of deploying 110 GW of offshore wind by 2050.

For more information about Intelatus Global Partners' U.S. Offshore Wind Market Forecast, visit www.intelatus.com or contact Michael Kozlowski at +1 561-733-2477or Philip Lewis at +44 203-966-2492