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Dominion Energy will pay $ 44 million over 10 years to lease 72 acres of the Portsmouth Marine Terminal at the Port of Virginia, which will serve as a preparation and pre-assembly area for the foundations, and up to 180 14 megawatts, 800-plus – Foot turbines will be installed 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach.
The company will also have two five-year options to extend its lease, with the deal including “significant upgrades” to ensure the terminal can support the weight of the large components that will be used to build the wind turbines. Once loaded onto the ships, the turbines will be transported to the construction site.
The offshore wind farm is expected to produce more than 2,600 megawatts of renewable energy and is capable of powering up to 660,000 homes.
“This location at the Port of Virginia is second to none,” Dominion Energy President and CEO Robert Blue said in a statement on Wednesday. “It has deep water access, no air restrictions, a strong and experienced maritime workforce, and sufficient space for these large components of wind infrastructure. It is ideally located to serve the Virginia offshore wind project and develop the national supply chain needed to complete other offshore wind projects in the United States. “
The state and Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted reached an agreement last year to lease 1.7 acres in the same terminal for offshore wind equipment and staging materials until at least 2026, with expansion options to an additional 40 acres. The deal could be worth around $ 13 million in lease payments, with potential site upgrades worth more than $ 20 million.
The latest deal announced by Governor Ralph Northam at the Business Network for Offshore Wind’s International Partnership Forum comes 18 months after the General Assembly passed the Clean Economy Act, which set a target in 2034 for the production of at least 5,200 megawatts of energy through offshore wind. (and a target of 16,100 megawatts of solar and wind power on land), as well as a 2045 target for Dominion Energy to achieve 100% carbon-free power generation.
“This announcement is another important step in making Virginia the national leader in offshore wind energy,” Northam said. “The Commonwealth and Dominion Energy are joining together to promote clean energy, reduce carbon emissions, create jobs and build a new American industry on the east coast of the United States. “
Northam and Blue recently discussed at the forum, a three-day global conference in Richmond – another day was spent in Virginia Beach and South Hampton Roads to visit the offshore wind project and the Port of Virginia.
Lease negotiations between the port and Dominion Energy resumed last month when the Virginia Port Authority’s board of commissioners asked the port’s CEO and executive director Stephen Edwards to complete lease negotiations. He said the port is ready to support Dominion Energy and the businesses and jobs expected from the project.
“For several years now, it has been known that the Port of Virginia, and more specifically the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, is positioned to be the main mid-Atlantic logistics hub for the offshore wind industry,” said Edwards. “This agreement capitalizes on PMT’s potential and consolidates Virginia’s position as a leader in this growing and competitive field.
Secretary of State for Transportation Shannon Valentine said the agreement “positions the Port of Virginia as the hub of this emerging industry and Virginia as the forerunner of offshore wind.”
President Joe Biden has set a target of 30 gigawatts for offshore wind capacity by 2030.
Dominion Energy currently operates two wind turbines off Virginia Beach, and last month the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a Notice of Intent for the commercial project, which begins the federal review process and preparation for a study. environmental impact, is expected to last about two years.
Dominion is building a 472-foot, $ 500 million Jones Act vessel in Brownsville, Texas in partnership with Ørsted and Eversource, which is expected to be sea-ready by the end of 2023. Once ready, it will be homeported to Hampton Roads and will be able to handle current turbine technologies and next-generation turbine sizes of 12 megawatts or more and will be able to handle the installation of the turbine foundations.
To build just two wind turbines, Dominion had to ship their components vertically on a foreign vessel from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada to the offshore site in Virginia, costing around $ 300 million. This is because there was no Jones Act vessel capable of doing the job, and part of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act exercise requires the use of Jones Act vessels for the construction of offshore wind farms.
The port is in the process of widening and dredging its navigation channels to a depth of 55 feet.
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