BOEM approves Atlantic Shores South offshore wind project

Image: BOEM

The U.S. Department of the Interior today announced its approval of the Atlantic Shores South offshore wind energy project, the ninth commercial-scale, U.S. offshore wind energy project approved during the Biden administration. With this latest approval, Interior has approved more than 13 gigawatts of offshore wind energy projects – enough to power nearly five million homes.

In addition to the milestone achieved today, since the start of the Biden administration, BOEM has held four offshore wind energy lease sales, including offshore New York, New Jersey, the Carolinas, and the first-ever sales offshore the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coasts. Interior also recently announced a schedule of up to 12 additional lease sales through 2028.

The Atlantic Shores South wind project consists of two wind energy facilities — Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind Project 1 and 2 — and associated export cables, which are expected to generate up to 2,800 megawatts of electricity, enough to power close to one million homes with clean renewable energy. The project is approximately 8.7 miles offshore New Jersey at its closest point. To provide energy to New Jersey, Atlantic Shores South proposed up to 200 total wind turbine generators and up to ten offshore substations with subsea transmission cables potentially making landfall in Atlantic City and Sea Girt, New Jersey.

BOEM has approved construction of up to 195 wind turbine generators.

On May 23, 2024, BOEM announced the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed project, which analyzed the potential environmental impacts of the activities outlined in the project’s construction and operations plan and considered reasonable alternatives. BOEM held four public meetings and a nation-to-nation consultation during the public comment period on the draft EIS to gather feedback from tribes, government agencies, ocean users, and others. The feedback resulted in measures identified to avoid, minimize or mitigate the potential impacts of the project, including visual impacts and potential impacts to marine life and to existing ocean uses such as fishing. The Record of Decision describes these measures, which BOEM will require as terms and conditions of its approval of the Atlantic Shores South Construction and Operations Plan. 

The “Notice of Availability of a Joint Record of Decision for the Proposed Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind South Project” will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days.

• Further information on the Atlantic Shores South project HERE

News of the approval was applauded by the Oceantic Network, the New Jersey Offshore Wind Alliance and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy.

“BOEM’s consistent efforts to move projects through the regulatory process are pushing the offshore wind industry forward,“ said Sam Salustro, vice president of strategic communication at Oceantic Network. “The Atlantic Shores South Record of Decision marks the agency’s ninth approval totaling more than 13 GW of offshore wind energy in the development pipeline. It also gives the State of New Jersey a shovel-ready project set to deliver jobs, investment, and clean energy. The Network appreciates the state’s efforts as an early partner and key industry ally, advancing the industry with bold procurements and forward-looking transmission and port strategies. We also congratulate Network member Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind for achieving this milestone.”

The developer of the project, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, LLC (Atlantic Shores) is a 50:50 joint venture partnership between Shell New Energies US LLC and EDF-RE Offshore Development, LLC (a subsidiary of EDF Renewables North America).

“Atlantic Shores is thrilled to receive Record of Decision from the Biden Administration. This milestone brings us one step closer to delivering New Jersey’s first offshore wind projects and for the state achieving its ambitious goal of 100% clean energy by 2035,” said Joris Veldhoven, CEO Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind. “We are grateful to BOEM, tribal nations, and the consulting agencies for their rigorous evaluation in coordination with the extraordinary Atlantic Shores permitting team. We recognize the significance of this milestone and we’re excited to work with our supply chain partners to continue making near-term investments and creating great paying union jobs.”

“Today’s announcement is the direct result of more than five years of stakeholder engagement and more than 40 environmental studies to safely and responsibly progress Atlantic Shores Project 1 and 2,” said Jennifer Daniels, development director, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind. “I am so proud of our team’s tireless efforts to secure these critical approvals and bring us one step closer to delivering clean energy to more than one million homes.”