Technical review of Vineyard Wind confirms no changes needed before federal permitting process completion

After completing a technical review of Vineyard Wind, the first large-scale U.S. offshore wind energy project, Vineyard Wind LLC has rescinded a December 2020 request to withdraw its Construction and Operations Plan (COP) and will instead proceed with federal permitting.

In December, Vineyard Wind selected GE Renewable Energy’s Haliade-X wind turbine generators for its offshore effort, which prompted the company to withdraw its COP from further review by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). This was only a temporary measure to allow time to conduct a final technical review associated with the addition of the Hiliade-X in the final project design.

With the conclusion of that review, Vineyard Wind remains on track to begin delivering energy through the project to Massachusetts in 2023.

“We have completed our final review and determined that no changes to the COP are necessary as a consequence of selecting the GE Haliade-X Turbine for the project.” Lars Pedersen, CEO of Vineyard Wind, said. “Since there are no changes required to the COP, we expect that BOEM can finalize their review based on the extensive analysis and studies of the project over the last three years. We look forward to completing the permitting phase of the project and to finalizing the engineering, contracting, and financing of the first utility scale offshore wind farm in the U.S.”

Vineyard Wind 1 is an 800 MW project located 15 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard. At full operation, it should generate electricity for more than 400,000 homes and businesses in Massachusetts. The addition of the Haliade-X generators will give it access to some of the most powerful turbines currently available to developers.