Reportedly, the Trump government has promised an “America First” policy and hyped a path for energy dominance. In the last few years, offshore wind energy has been a stimulating element of this agenda. Nonetheless, the recent actions by the U.S. DOI (Department of Interior) have left the industry and workers—who would benefit from the multi-million-dollar spending in offshore wind—wondering where the plan is actually going. Trump’s Executive Order 13783 evidently says that in the safe and clean development of the country’s energy resources it is imperative to avoid “dictatorial burdens that unnecessarily hinder energy production, prevent job creation, and constrain economic growth.”
The DOI’s BOEM (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management) held several auctions for offshore wind development regions and publicized more than 15 leases, over half of those being leased by the Trump administration. Those leases added more than $472 Million in income to the U.S. Treasury. From the inception of this administration, the DOI has been sending indications that offshore wind development was greeted in the U.S., and the businesses were proposed and invested accordingly. Nonetheless, recently the DOI decided to postpone the issuance of the final environmental evaluation of the Vineyard offshore wind farm, situated sideways of Massachusetts. The offshore wind presents the opportunity to form an entirely new US ocean energy resource, and there are enormous benefits that come with that opportunity.
On a similar note, Prince Charles plans to formally open one of the biggest offshore wind farms globally in Scotland. Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm—which is the fourth major wind farm on the planet—is situated 13 Kilometers from the Caithness coast in Scotland. As reported by an energy firm SSE, this farm has 84 turbines and will create sufficient renewable energy to power 450,000 homes yearly. Reportedly, SSE has 40% shares in the Beatrice project.
