The past two years, information about US offshore wind power emerging. In 2014 the United States started the first commercial-scale wind farms, offshore Energy Authority continued introduction of new offshore wind power tender, NorthEast active project development information, as well as European financial institutions to enter the United States to finance the offshore wind power market information has proclaimed good some lively scene. This paper will comb the recent US offshore wind power policy, as well as several focus on the development of offshore wind power development status of the area, in order to help readers focus on China offshore wind power development in the United States to better understand the US offshore wind market potential opportunities.
US offshore wind tremendous potential, according to the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory in 2012 technical report showed US offshore wind power development technical potential of about 4.223 billion kW. Area offshore wind most of the Outer Continental Shelf (outer continental shelf) in the continental United States. Outer continental shelf belong to federal jurisdiction, so the federal government has management rights in the development and utilization of marine renewable energy aspects.
October 1, 2011, the US Department of the Interior was established Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and implementing Bureau (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation andEnforcement, BOEM) under the authority of the federal government. The newly established Ocean Energy Authority will belong to the history of the National Mining Administration (Mineral Service) of offshore oil and gas development work of consolidating scope of the new bureau. Another important task of Ocean Energy Authority is to serve the Obama administration's commitment to the development of offshore wind power resource, the system to promote the development of offshore wind power. In addition to offshore wind projects, ocean energy bureau also promote offshore tidal energy and offshore solar energy development projects. Both former Marine Energy Authority, "Environment, Safety and implementation of office" part of the work, and is therefore related to the development of marine environmental assessment work also incorporated into the management of new marine energy Authority.
Ocean Energy Development Project Office and its federal waters
According to the energy policy bill 2005, Ocean Energy Authority has the right to develop federal waters, and can be leased (auction leases) federal waters such as the right way to develop renewable energy waters for development. At the same bill also gives Ocean Energy Authority to coordinate the various state governments and relevant local government, carry out offshore wind power and other renewable energy development rights. In fact, Ocean Energy Authority is equivalent to federal agencies an inter-agency vertical management that helps coordination between the federal and state governments on the development of offshore wind power and other renewable energy sources that might arise. Since the mechanism while both environmental regulatory functions, it can solve the offshore wind power development of environmental assessment in the same organization, the process of implementation of environmental regulation and other issues. Such a government agency set up to develop greatly simplify examination and approval procedures and project development processes offshore wind projects for offshore wind power development has played a huge role in boosting.
In 2009, when he was Minister of the Obama Administration and the US Department of the Interior Salazar proposed development of renewable energy projects in the coastal shelf. The project for the establishment of Ocean Energy Authority subsequently provided a more detailed legal framework to the Bureau of Ocean Energy provides a more effective and highly flexible management models in order to promote the development of offshore wind power industry. In this framework, four aspects of Ocean Energy Authority will work to promote offshore wind power: planning, development rights lease, wind resource assessment and the development and construction.
According coastal shelf Development Act, Marine Energy Authority through tender to issue offshore wind power project development rights. Unless the location of the project was confirmed that no commercial potential competition, you can grant development rights through non-competitive way. Over the past few years, the SOA has already begun and the "non-competitive" two ways of development rights granted by public tender. Open tender all concession tender in the traditional sense, by the Oceanic Administration selected by the program have development potential and commercially competitive bidding project and convene the developer. "Non-competitive" approach is often the developers want to develop the area of ??their choice, and make a lot of preliminary work and investment, after the adoption of the SOA application commercial lease to obtain development rights.
So far, Ocean Energy Authority has carried out two large open tender. Respectively, in July 2013 in Massachusetts and Rhode Island project in September 2013 in the Virginia project. Two subprojects Massachusetts Rhode Island project by Deepwater Wind Power Company obtained preliminary siting wind measurement time two projects for 5 years, the project operation time of 25 years. This is one of the items that will be mentioned below 30MW Block Island project. Dominion Virginia wind power project by the company received, hours of operation of the project is 33 years, pre-siting and wind measurement time is 5 years.
In the evaluation process, Marine Energy Authority to evaluate the use of multi-index approach, both consider the price factor also consider non-price factors. The price factor refers to the right to develop the bid, rather than the price factor is mainly to see whether the project has received the joint development of power purchase agreement or government power project agreement. The bidding process conducted online, and finally into the evaluation of only a few companies, and to a considerable amount of bids submitted in advance guarantees to ensure that companies have bid strength. The auction for the right to develop Oceanic waters were asking, every company should have a round asking price, there will be a company to exit. After each round of bidding, the SOA will raise the price according to the situation, start a new round of bidding, the last remaining until only the end of a bidding company. In the bidding process, the non-price factors in the assessment before the opening, qualified companies can get up to 25% of the credit limit. By using the line of credit can help relieve the burden on the right to develop bid.
Over the past six months, Ocean Energy Authority and state governments work together to further advance the bidding a number of projects, including: in August 2014 has just concluded two tender Maryland waters, covering 80,000 acres waters. 2014, Ocean Energy Authority will auction five projects in New Jersey waters, the current project is still public comment phase.
In the "non-competition" leasehold payment terms, there are two projects to get project approval. One is the famous Cape project, which has undergone more than ten years of preparation and preparation, and finally get the project developer Ocean Energy Authority authorized in October 2010. Project was 5 years and 28 years of wind project development rights. Another project is a project in 2012 awarded the company developed Bluewater Wind Delaware waters. The project received five-year period and 25 years of wind project development rights.
Who built America's first offshore wind power project?
Two projects mentioned earlier, one of the nation's largest offshore wind power project 468,000 kW Cape Wind project and the other is Massachusetts 30000 kW block island projects are competing to become America's first offshore wind power project. Both projects have been in line with ITC ensure that project requirements, and will be completed in the second half of 2016 by launching the project preparatory work and other means.
Cape Wind project which has already received 77.5 percent capacity project and signed a power purchase agreement. As the project capacity is large, the difficulty of financing is also great, the overall financing of the project at about $ 2.6 billion. Huge project financing needs, it also attracts a lot of institutional investors, which is the most attractive of attention Danish pension funds, the fund will invest $ 200 million, in addition, the project also received $ 500 million in financing US Department of Energy guarantee. Shanghai Electric Wind Power (Siemens joint venture) company as a supplier of equipment for the project will also provide part of the financing, but even so the project still has huge financing needs. Cape Wind project will use 130 sets of Shanghai Electric Wind Power (Siemens joint venture) 3.6MW wind turbines.
Block island project in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, the project total investment of about $ 250 million. The project capacity of the whole project has signed a power purchase agreement. The project will use Alstom's 6MW offshore wind turbines.
Offshore wind power potential in the northeast
In addition to the right to develop offshore projects directly coordinated aforementioned Marine Energy Authority federal waters auction, Ocean Energy Agency is also working closely with coastal state governments, promote coordination states in waters offshore wind power development. Which in promoting offshore wind power development to go more forward primarily in the northeastern US state. East Coast have become attractive offshore wind power development in the region, mainly because of the Atlantic coastal shelf is gentle, shallow water, low development cost of offshore wind power a small risk. Another reason is the economic reasons, northeast fast economic development, population and electricity load, high current price levels. From the Midwest and the eastern city center farther onshore wind, the high cost of long-distance transport of wind power facilities and inadequate power grid, thus forming a natural fit to accept high price of offshore wind power market.
This one has a few states to support efforts to large offshore wind power, such as the introduction of New Jersey in 2010 offshore wind power economic development bill. Electricity generated by offshore wind power can serve as a local renewable energy quota, the local power company through the purchase of offshore wind power renewable energy quota (OREC) can help to complete the New Jersey quota system for renewable energy targets. New Jersey state government further requires 2020 statewide 1100MW installed capacity of offshore wind power. And Maryland in 2013 also launched a similar program of support to the 2017 renewable energy quota system in the state targets specifically for offshore wind power allocation quota system goals.
Other government-funded projects
US Department of Energy to meet the development needs of offshore wind power technology, in order to stimulate technological innovation selecting multiple offshore wind power advanced technology demonstration projects that will receive DOE funding, and installed capacity in 2017 will be achieved. Earlier, in 2012 the Department of Energy selected 7 technical innovation demonstration projects, each giving $ 4,000,000 to complete the first phase of the project, including engineering design, location and project design. May 2014, the Energy Bureau from seven projects selected to enter the second phase of the three projects, the requirements of these three projects into the more detailed project design stage, and requires the project to achieve commercial operation in 2017. By then, the three projects will receive up to $ 46.7 million in funding over the next four years. These three projects are selected direct-drive models and two different infrastructures.
The three projects include Virginia waters Dominon Power Company project, the project will install two Alstom 6MW direct drive wind turbine, the technical characteristics of the project is to test the United States to produce new infrastructure: twisted jacket foundation ( Twisted Jacket foundation), that is, three-legged next to the central infrastructure in a twist rotation. The base cost is lower, is the testing stage. Another project is the New Jersey Atlantic City? Sherman project, which will use the Hunan Electric 5MW direct drive project. The project will also use twisted jacket foundation. The third project is the company's floating base Principle offshore wind projects, the project will use the Shanghai Electric Wind Power (Siemens joint venture) 6M direct drive wind turbine development in Oregon waters, is the first development in the Atlantic offshore wind power project. The project will use the United States to develop their own infrastructure, half floating wind turbine will be assembled on shore, after being dragged into the deep sea tug fixed.
in conclusion
As the world's wind TVU country over the past few years the United States offshore wind power has been hesitant advance. Europe's leading position in the offshore market, and compared with China's rapid speed of deployment of offshore wind power, the United States, offshore wind has not really achieve a breakthrough. However, we can be found in a variety of deployment federal and state governments, it is in full swing. From the establishment of the National Bureau of Ocean Energy, to the waters of development rights auction, the legislative support of all within the state and so on, and so forth. Despite the late start, but in the approval mechanism design, to approve issuance, there are many aspects of the bidding procedures for the establishment of China can learn from the place. In this paper, limited space, not one by one interpretation of the detailed rules for the right to develop offshore bidding, but which the tendering procedures set selection criteria and other bidders have a lot of scientific design, very worthy of our study.
Of course, since the offshore wind power industry started late, the US maritime industry there are significant challenges, such as the United States wind power companies do not have the offshore wind power development capability, wind turbines most currently bidding for projects using both European and Chinese companies WTG . In addition, local banks and institutional investors for offshore wind lack of knowledge, lack of assessment of risk, and therefore has not become major investors in offshore wind power. But as everywhere in offshore wind projects, more and more projects into the water and began to run, upstream and downstream industries will gradually strengthen awareness of offshore wind power. The whole industry chain to a full range of financial institutions involved in what is just around the corner.
Another problem for offshore wind power development limiting factor is the end of 2014, the Parliament re-introduced tax credits (Tax credits) policies. Current production tax credit (PTC) and investment tax credit (ITC) has ended (the ongoing construction of offshore wind power project in late 2013 in order to meet the requirements of ITC, all before the end of 2013 started investment projects, and It will be completed in 2016). The initial investment for larger offshore wind power project, developers generally choose ITC. As of November 2014, the United States, wind power and renewable energy industry is also pushing Congress to renew before the end of 2014 a two-year tax credit regulations. However, after mid-term elections in early November, the Republican House and Senate majority vote, and it will start in January 2015 dominated parliament. Traditionally, the Republicans than the Democrats treat environmental issues and renewable energy in a more negative attitude, most industry people hope tax credit legislation can be introduced in 2014 the last one month.
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