The three companies vying to win Massachusetts' second solicitation for offshore wind projects have submitted bids for Connecticut's recent solicitation for offshore projects, setting off a multistate competition among global leaders in the industry.
Bay State Wind L.L.C., Vineyard Wind LLC and Mayflower Wind Energy LLC are the three companies that have proposed projects off Connecticut's coast. Redacted versions of the proposals were released by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection following the Sept. 30 deadline for submitting bids. A law signed by Gov. Ned Lamont in June calls for the procurement of 2,000 MW of offshore wind generation by 2030.
Developers must navigate a patchwork of local, state and federal regulations in the U.S. as the nascent industry builds upon a weak supply chain and as federal tax credits expire at the end of 2019.
Bay State Wind, a joint venture of Ørsted A/S and Eversource Energy, calls its project Constitution Wind. The company has not released publicly its proposed capacities for the project. Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners K/S and Avangrid Inc.'s Avangrid Renewables LLC, proposed a 400-MW project, with options to develop additional capacity up to 1,200 MW. The majority stakeholder of Avangrid is Iberdrola SA.
Mayflower Wind Energy is a joint venture between Shell New Energies US LLC and EDPR Offshore North America LLC. The company proposed to supply power to Connecticut from its projected 1,600-MW Mayflower Wind Offshore Project. Shell New Energies US is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, and EDPR Offshore North America is a subsidiary of EDP Energias de Portugal. Mayflower proposed an 804-MW project and a 408-MW project.
Connecticut regulators will announce the winners in November.
