Innovative U.S. Offshore Wind Project Proposed
Jonathan Fuller | December 22, 2017
Deepwater Wind, a leader in U.S. offshore wind development, has proposed an offshore wind project with a first-of-its-kind transmission backbone.
The company is proposing the Revolution Wind project to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in response to the state’s 83C offshore wind solicitation, according to a December 20 press release. The project would be a partnership between Deepwater Wind, National Grid Ventures and FirstLight Power.
Deepwater Wind is looking to build a novel transmission system to enable its energy delivery to be scheduled to meet peak energy demands. By partnering with the storage capability of the largest hydroelectric pumped storage facility in New England — the Northfield Mountain pumped-hydroelectric station operated by FirstLight Power Resources, a hydroelectric and energy storage company — offshore wind can act like a baseload resource.
“We’re very excited to collaborate with Deepwater Wind and National Grid to help Massachusetts reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reach its environmental goals,” said John Shue, FirstLight Power Resources’ senior executive. “Northfield Mountain, New England’s largest source of green energy storage, can store wind energy when demand is at its lowest and deliver it back to the Commonwealth’s consumers when it’s needed most.”
“Pairing clean energy storage at Northfield Mountain with offshore wind energy will ensure that the people of Massachusetts capture the greatest environmental benefit they can, in the most efficient manner possible,” Shue added.
Revolution Wind would be sited southwest of Martha’s Vineyard at Deepwater Wind’s federal lease site. If approved, construction work would begin in 2022, with operations slated to begin in 2023.
Deepwater Wind is already active in offshore wind development in the New England region. The company developed the 30 MW Block Island Wind Farm, which began operations off the Rhode Island coast in October 2016.