Wind Farms Off the Coast of the Delmarva Peninsula
The world’s leading developer of offshore wind projects, Ørsted, a Danish company, plans to locate two projects off the coast of the Delmarva Peninsula, designated as Skipjack Wind 1 and Skipjack Wind 2.
The first project will be located 19 miles off Ocean City and Delaware beach towns and will provide 40,000 homes with clean energy, as well as help Maryland attain its renewable energy goals. It is projected to come online in the second half of 2026. After receiving the required approvals, Ørsted will deploy Haliade-X 12MV wind turbines. The project will also create almost 1,400 jobs, 913 during the development and construction phase and 484 when it’s operational. Thirty-four percent of the project’s total capital will be spent in Maryland.
A two-year delay was announced by the company in February, moving the completion date to 2026. The delay is because Ørsted has not established an interconnection facility, i.e., a site where energy collected is connected to the power grid. Ørsted had originally proposed a site at Fenwick Island State Park in exchange for an $18 million investment in the park, but the company turned away from that deal to avoid disturbing the park’s wetlands.
Ørsted submitted another bid to the Maryland Public Service Commission on July 7. The Skipjack 2 project will produce 760 megawatts, or enough energy to power 250,000 homes. The next step, according to Ørsted, will be to hold meetings with community stakeholders in Maryland and Delaware to discuss the timeline and other project details.
Another company, US Wind, a subsidiary of an Italian company, is planning to build the MarWin Wind farm 17 miles off Ocean City. The distance has become a source of protests. A national organization made up of fishermen and businesses, the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, is working to improve cooperation between the federal government and wind developers.
Annie Hawkins, executive director of RODA, charges that federal regulations were poorly written and are now outdated because of technological advancements. The turbines that Ørsted plans to use are 207 feet taller than Maryland’s tallest building and 252 feet taller than the Washington Monument. Hawkins argues that the regulations were adopted “when the offshore wind industry was struggling to get off the ground.”
Some in coastal communities argue that their concerns have been ignored and that the projects are being railroaded through. According to Terry McGean, Ocean City’s engineer, wind turbine placement is one of the main questions that town officials ask the wind developer during meetings. McGean says that Ocean City has significant problems trusting U.S. Wind and Ørsted, because they either “don’t answer or say that it’s proprietary information.” In August 2020, the Maryland Public Service Commission ordered Ørsted to engage with stakeholders, and communications have reportedly improved.
Jeffrey Grybowski, CEO of US Wind, states: “I think offshore wind will be a spectacular boon for Ocean City. I simply don’t think the evidence bears out the position that tourism will be hurt by offshore wind.”
The move to renewable energy in Maryland is a result of the passage of the Clean Energy Jobs Act by the Maryland legislature in 2019. That legislation mandates examining ways to move toward covering 50% of the state’s energy needs with clean energy by 2030 and 100% by 2040.
Ørsted has 28 other offshore windfarm locations, including the first offshore commercial location in the U.S. off Block Island Rhode Island.
Sources:
Ørsted, Skipjack Wind Farm 1
https://skipjackwindfarm.com/en
Matthew Prensky, “Ørsted announces another delay to Skipjack Wind Farm near Ocean City,” Salisbury Daily Times
Matthew Prensky, “As offshore wind nears reality, coastal groups say they feel 'steamrolled'”, Salisbury Daily Times
A native of Wicomico County, George Shivers holds a doctorate from the University of Maryland and taught in the Foreign Language Dept. of Washington College for 38 years before retiring in 2007. He is also very interested in the history and culture of the Eastern Shore, African American history in particular.
Common Sense for the Eastern Shore
