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Outlook for Offshore Wind Energy Still Breezy, Official Says

The director of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management predicts a rise in the number of wind turbines off the East and West Coasts in the not so distant future.

(TNS) — In the federal government, nobody has a bigger-picture view of offshore wind energy’s potential than Abigail Ross Hopper.

As the director of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, she oversees the leasing of U.S. waters for wind farms.

Along this stretch of coast, that’s been a sore subject for advocates of alternative energy. They say Dominion Virginia Power, which holds the lease for a commercial wind farm off Virginia Beach, has been dragging its feet. Citing concerns that state regulators will balk at the price, Dominion hasn’t pulled the trigger on a two-turbine demonstration project. In May, that cost it a $40 million federal research grant.

Despite the setback, Hopper foresees turbines in the Atlantic. Lots of them, including off Virginia. And, really, not that long from now.

I sat down with her over iced tea last month at Margie & Ray’s, just up the road from Sandbridge.

Well past the lunch rush for most restaurants, the place was still eardrum-bruising loud with diners reveling in crab cakes and fried oysters. We moved twice before settling at a folding table quiet enough to half-shout questions and answers at one another.

I asked her to survey the oceanscape in 2050 and tell me what she saw for wind energy.

“I think there will be turbines running up and down the coasts, the East Coast and the West Coast, and I don’t think it will be a big deal,” Hopper said. “Just like I’m looking out the window right now and there’s power lines along the side of the road that I ordinarily don’t see because I’m used to them.”

Hopper’s a lawyer and Dartmouth history grad with a folksy, familiar manner. She’s been known to announce her cellphone number to hundreds of people at public events. She tells everybody to call her Abby, and most people do.

Hopper said she believes in offshore wind energy because it’s becoming a major force in other parts of the world as economies of scale begin working in its favor.

“Look at Europe and how the costs have really come down,” she said.

Recently, the Dutch government auctioned the rights for two large wind farms in the North Sea based on the lowest price of energy to which the bidder committed. The winning bid (out of 38 companies, by the way) came in at the equivalent of about $95 per megawatt hour generated, a record low for offshore wind, according to trade industry reports. That was $40 per megawatt hour below the previous low set by a Danish project just last year.

The price is still above the average for other energy sources – in some cases, significantly so. But a growing critical mass, from engineering and design to manufacturing and installation, is narrowing offshore wind’s disadvantage in Europe. Thousands of turbines are spinning at sea there – more than 500 off Denmark alone.

And the U.S.?

Would you believe … five?

Yep, that’s how many are part of the nation’s first project, off Block Island, R.I.

Deepwater Wind’s project is in state waters, and a special situation. It’s replacing electricity that now comes from diesel generators – one of the most expensive and dirty forms of power. Still, some on Block Island aren’t thrilled. They say the turbines mar the view and, at $300 million, are too costly.

Not exactly a model for scaling up.

The true test, Hopper said, will be what happens with big designated wind-farm areas farther from shore in federal waters.

On the East Coast, 11 such leases have been auctioned by her bureau. More are coming, she said, including one centered off Kitty Hawk in the Outer Banks.

“I think it’s going to be a race – a really fun, exciting race to watch.”

Virginia – riding Dominion – once looked almost certain to capture the East Coast sweepstakes. Now, Massachusetts, with a brand-new state law mandating some reliance on offshore wind energy, is prancing toward the starting gate. New York isn’t far behind.

If a company holding a federal lease off one of those states commits to a project, the thinking goes, that’ll encourage others to bolt too.

And then maybe the economics will push more projects onto the track.

Hopper said that as the first round of federal leases moves toward a close, her main focus is on developing “a very clear roadmap” for commercial development. Under her watch, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has been convening monthly meetings among the U.S. agencies that have a say on wind projects at sea.

The coordination should help keep developers from being slowed by conflicting signals.

After talking with Hopper, I called George Hagerman, a Virginia Tech senior research associate who knows a lot about offshore wind energy.

“So you got to talk with Abby.” Did she give me her cellphone number? he asked.

No.

I asked him if he had hers.

Yes.

Back to the point: Hagerman is helping a National Science Foundation-funded center at Tidewater Community College figure out what changes would be needed in maritime training if wind turbines pop up along the coast.

That’s no small question. Virginia alone could see as many as 14,000 jobs in the offshore wind energy industry, according to a report earlier this year from a group called the American Jobs Project.

Hagerman said that over time, U.S. factories should be able to manufacture turbines cheaper than in Europe. And the wind resource off the coasts is big. Really big.

But the race that Hopper foresees may need some stimulation, he said: “a way to coordinate so that the people who invest in the factories know that they won’t be stranded.”

Hagerman said coastal states should consider forming regional authorities that would pool their resources to buy turbines.

It’s hard to imagine Virginia teaming up with North Carolina or Maryland for economic development.

But maybe it’s worth a look. Or better yet, since we’re talking wind turbines, a spin.

The next time I speak with Hopper – I mean, Abby – I’ll be sure to ask her about it.

©2016 The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Va.), Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.