ENVIRONMENTAL BUSINESS
New Jersey Aims to be Leader in Offshore Wind Industry
BPU advances goals
By Diane C . Walsh Acting Editor
New Jersey is poised to become a nationwide leader in the offshore wind industry as it strives to reach its clean energy goals .
Since 2019 the state Board of Public Utilities has approved 3,800 megawatts of offshore wind energy — more than half way to Gov . Phil Murphy ’ s goal of generating 7,500 megawatts by 2035 .
The electricity will power 1.6 million homes and generate $ 5 million in economic benefits , according to Bob Gordon , a former state senator now serving as a BPU commissioner .
Of all the agency ’ s initiatives , Gordon said offshore wind is “ the most exciting because we have an opportunity to create a whole new industry and thousands of jobs …. I believe we can make New Jersey the very center of the wind industry for the entire Atlantic seaboard .”
Gordon updated business leaders on the state ’ s progress at a conference organized by the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey . The state official said , unlike many other lawmakers , he once ran a textile plant owned by his family and understands the challenges a small business faces . “ They are always uppermost in my mind , something I think about in everything I do at the BPU ,” he said .
Under Gov . Murphy , the mission of the BPU has expanded beyond regulating utilities rates and investment to advancing the initiatives for clean energy . Murphy wants to achieve 100 percent clean energy by 2050 and the roadmap to getting there is outlined in the state ’ s energy master plan . Offshore wind energy , solar power and transitioning to electric vehicles are the cornerstones of the plan .
New Jersey ’ s current goal is for offshore wind to produce 25 percent of the state ’ s energy by 2050 . While the impetus is to reduce the state ’ s reliance on fossil fuels , the economic development potential has guided many of the BPU ’ s decision on individual applications . In approving the latest projects , the agency made certain there was a commitment to manufacture components in the state .
Last September Murphy presided over the groundbreaking of the New Jersey Wind Port in Salem County which will provide more than 200 acres for essential staging , assembling and manufacturing activities for the East Coast offshore wind supply chain and generate $ 500 million in new economic activity annually .
New Jersey is offering incentives to homeowners to encourage installation of solar panels on residentiial buildings ..
Photo : Getty Images / iStockphoto / MAXSHOT
BPU Commissioner Bob Gordon
The state also invested $ 250 million in a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that will produce the largest turbine monopolies in the world . The plant is under construction at the Paulsboro marine terminal and it is expected to employ 500 workers in this phase . Long-term the wind port is expected to support 1,000 jobs , Gordon said . The BPU and the state Economic Development Authority are investing $ 15 million in a wind institute to develop an offshore wind workforce training program .
The BPU is also working with the PJM , the regional transmission organization that matches electricity supply and demands , to develop plans to bring the offshore power into the onshore grid . Gordon explained the PJM covers 13 states and Washington , D . C ., and the territory encompasses 60 million people . New Jersey is the first state authorized by the federal regulatory commission to address this issue .
Gordon said last year the BPU and PJM solicited proposals that would be both cost effective and environmentally sensitive . Thirteen of the biggest transmission developers responded to the solicitation , submitting 80 different proposals that are now being reviewed . “ The response , I
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