Offshore Wind Wire

Business leaders in southeastern Virginia announced the formation last week of a coalition to promote offshore wind industry.

The Virginia Offshore Wind Coalition is based in the city of Virginia Beach and is promoting the entire Hampton Roads region as a center for the East Coast offshore wind industry.  Hampton Roads is already home to large-scale shipbuilding and port facilities.

“Promoting wind energy off Virginia Beach’s coast is good for business and good for the environment.,” said Virginia Beach Mayor William Sessoms Jr.  “The opportunities are limitless.  Virginia Beach is proud to join the rest of Hampton Roads as a key player in promoting offshore wind in Virginia and will continue to work with the Virginia Offshore Wind Coalition to make it a reality.”

The coalition includes national companies, such as SAIC and BAE Systems, as well as local firms and Virginia-based utilities.

According to the organization’s Web site, the coalition will lobby the Virginia legislature to create offshore wind incentives and reach out to the offshore wind industry “to promote Hampton Roads as the hub for the offshore wind industry on the East Coast.”

The coalition said it will push lawmakers during 2010 to create a Virginia Offshore Wind Energy Authority to manage public-private partnerships for offshore data collection and environmental studies and studies on necessary improvements to the transmission system to accommodate 3000 MW of offshore wind energy projects.  The group also said it would lobby for offshore wind Renewable Energy Credits, which would be worth three times as much as land-based Renewable Energy Credits.

“This is an exciting time for Virginia and Hampton Roads,” Sessoms said.