The USA will hold an auction sale Monday for the 3.4GW New Jersey offshore wind lease area.
As many as 13 companies are eligible to bid on the 344,000-acre site, which has been split into two separate lease areas.
It’s not known how many developers will join the bidding given uncertainty over the state’s offshore renewable energy certificate program.
New Jersey has passed a law that requires utilities to purchase electricity from offshore wind farms. However, the Board of Public Utilities has yet to develop an OREC scheme.
The New Jersey lease area begins seven miles offshore from Atlantic City and extends from Cape May north for 60 miles to Barnegat.
The US has so far awarded nine commercial wind leases, including seven through its competitive lease sale process. Sales have produced about $14.5m in high bids for more than 700,000 acres in federal waters.
BOEM expects to auction three lease areas off North Carolina next year and planning is underway for New York and South Carolina.
Image: Block Island will be the first offshore wind farm in the USA (Deepwater Wind)
