Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind: Construction of Largest US Offshore Wind Farm Finally Approved
The last set of conditions needed to authorize the development of the biggest offshore farm in the nation has been approved by US authorities. The project, featuring hundreds of turbines, will generate renewable energy for a hundred thousand residences.
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Last Hurdle Before Building the Largest Offshore Wind Farm
Dominion Energy's 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project has employed more than 750 individuals from the state of Virginia, and additional workers have been used by other companies supporting CVOW. This endeavor includes redeveloping the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, establishing the offshore wind Monitoring and Coordination Centre, provisioning for the maritime industry, ship maintenance, heavy lift and rigging, cyber security, culinary service, and hospitality.
Nearly 457 kilometers off the coast of Virginia Beach will serve as the location of the CVOW, which will have 176 turbines and three offshore substations. As mentioned, the final approval of CVOW's Construction and Operations Plan (COP) was given by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). It reportedly permits the offshore wind farm's offshore construction, which is expected to be completed in late 2026 and produce enough renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers issued the other approval, allowing authorized impacts to be made to seas within the United States. These consequences included the path of the electric transmission line that would connect the offshore wind farm to the electric grid onshore.
On the other hand, Dominion Energy contracted DEME and Prysmian as Balance of Plant (BoP) contractors to move and set up the groundwork and electrical substations and provide EPCI services for the inter-array and ship wiring for the most significant commercial offshore wind farm in the US.
Moreover, offshore construction operations are anticipated to begin in the second quarter of this year, including installing the monopile foundation and the export cable. Additionally, the developer stated that due to these final permissions, some onshore activities started in November 2023, following the Record of Decision issued by BOEM, and will continue to increase.
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Positive and Negative Impact of Offshore Wind Farm Project
As part of an effort to lessen the nation's reliance on fossil fuels, which are responsible for the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, environmentalists believe that the wind facility, along with others currently in the pipeline at the federal level, is essential.
However, concerns regarding the project's potential effects on endangered North Atlantic right whales have been among the most contentious issues. The construction activities linked with many offshore wind projects along the East Coast have been the subject of attempts by conservative lawmakers and advocates of the petroleum industry to establish a connection between a recent spate of unexplained whale fatalities and the development activities.
Nevertheless, scientists from the federal government assert that there is no evidence linking the fatality to the turbine construction.
Furthermore, as per the Record of Decision, Dominion must take several precautions to safeguard the right whales. These precautions include suppressing loud underwater noises, preventing vessel collisions, and employing observers to watch for the presence of right whales. Therefore, it is anticipated that the project will have a 'minor' influence on the species as a whole.
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