The US government has set a new 15GW floating offshore wind target for 2035.
The targets build on the President Biden’s existing goal of deploying 30GW of offshore wind by 2030, which will be largely met using fixed-bottom technology.
In a statement, the US government noted that deep-water areas that require floating platforms are home to two-thirds of America’s offshore wind energy potential, including along the West Coast and in the Gulf of Maine.
“Bringing floating offshore wind technology to scale will unlock new opportunities for offshore wind power off the coasts of California and Oregon, in the Gulf of Maine, and beyond,” the US administration said.
The US Departments of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will advance lease areas in deep waters for floating technology, starting with a lease auction off the coast of California by the end of 2022.
It is hoped that achieving the targets will spur billions of dollars of economic opportunities and avoid an estimated 26 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually.
“Tapping into these resources will expand clean American energy supplies and contribute significantly to achieving climate goals set by the President and Governors across the country,” the statement said.
The Biden/Harris administration also announced an initiative called the Energy EarthshotTM program which will help accelerate breakthroughs across engineering, manufacturing, and other innovation areas.
The Floating Offshore Wind Shot will aim to reduce the costs of floating technologies by more than 70% by 2035, to $45 per megawatt-hour.
To support these new goals on floating offshore wind, the US Department of Energy has also announced nearly $50 million-including support from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-for research, development, and demonstration funding.