The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has announced funding totalling almost US$49m for projects that address a number of offshore wind challenges.
The Offshore Wind National and Regional Research and Development Funding Opportunity will award US$48.6m to projects in several major areas of need.
The areas include accelerating research and development of floating offshore wind platforms; exploring innovations for fixed-bottom foundations; and improving offshore wildlife protection through new monitoring technologies.
They will also encompass expanding the reach of the domestic supply chain; advancing US academic leadership in floating offshore wind; and investigating solutions to protect future infrastructure from lightning.
This funding opportunity comprises US$48m in funding from WETO with US$600,000 in funding support from the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.
Together, successful projects addressing the following topic areas under this funding opportunity announcement will speed up the use of wind power off US coasts and contribute to a robust clean energy economy driven by a carbon-free power sector, DOE said.