"Massachusetts Just Gave A Huge Boost To The Offshore Wind Industry"

"Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed a new energy law on Monday that could give a huge boost to the country’s offshore wind industry. The legislation, which was overwhelmingly passed last week by the state legislature, includes the nation’s biggest commitment to offshore wind energy, requiring utilities to procure a combined 1,600 megawatts of electricity from offshore wind farms in a little over 10 years.

The legislation comes at a time when the offshore wind industry is still ramping up in the United States. Although multiple projects have been proposed up and down the East Coast, there are no working turbines in the water yet. That should soon change.

In Rhode Island, wind energy development company Deepwater Wind is preparing to enter the final stages of construction — perhaps as early as next week — on a 30-megawatt offshore wind farm. While relatively small in scale, the project would be the first of its kind to function in U.S. waters, and has been hailed as a long-awaited jump start to the nation’s offshore wind industry."

Chelsea Harvey reports for the Washington Post August 8, 2016.