Massachusetts Taps Mayflower Wind for 804-MW Offshore Wind Project

(Photo Credit: Mayflower Wind)

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s administration selected a Mayflower Wind proposal as the winning bid for an 804-megawatt offshore wind project. With this latest project, the state is expected to reach approximately 1.6 gigawatts of offshore wind power.

Renewable energy developer Mayflower Wind, which is a joint venture project of Shell and EDP Renewables, “proposed wind energy at a more competitive price with greater economic development opportunities for the Commonwealth and the South Coast than any other bidder,” according to the governor’s office.

The winning bid calls for building an array of wind turbines about 20 nautical miles south of Nantucket, Colin A. Young reported for WBUR.

“State officials said Wednesday that they could not comment on the project’s proposed price because they are now preparing to negotiate contracts,” Young wrote. “But Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Judith Judson said the administration and distribution companies ‘were extremely pleased with the pricing we saw as well as the other benefits Mayflower brought into the solicitation.’”

Mayflower Wind anticipates that the project will produce a $3.7 billion electricity rate reduction over the term of the contract. The developer also sees “long term prices below the original price cap of $84.23/MWh.”

Under the Massachusetts Energy Diversity Act that Baker signed in 2016, utilities in the state are required to competitively solicit and contract for approximately 1.2 gigawatts of renewable energy generation. The legislation also allowed the procurement of approximately 1.6 GW of offshore wind power.

The first procurement project under that legislation was the 800-MW Vineyard Wind I project. However, its fate is currently unclear. WBUR’s Bruce Gellerman reported in August that federal regulators want new studies of the “cumulative impacts” of wind projects in the area. “Regulators indicated construction could be delayed until March 2020, if not longer,” he noted.

Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides told WBUR this week that the state, utilities, and wind developers hope to apply lessons learned from the Vineyard Wind I project to the newest one led by Mayflower. The combined energy output of the two projects would represent around 12% of the state’s annual energy demand, according to the governor’s office.

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