Offshore Wind Wire

By Peter Brennan

The Offshore Wind Development Coalition – a newly minted advocacy group – will focus initially on streamlining federal regulations, the leader of the organization said last week in an interview with Offshore Wind Wire.

The group, also known as OffshoreWindDC, is led by former Deepwater Wind executive Jim Lanard.  Referring to the recently approved Cape Wind project, Lanard said that “seven to nine years is far too long of a timeline to attract investors.”

“We hope to work with the Department of the Interior to address the concerns of federal regulators and industry in order to streamline the federal permitting process” said Lanard.  “No jobs are created when development stalls. Streamlined permitting would allow manufacturers and investors to invest and see a return on that investment within a reasonable amount of time, thereby creating jobs.”

Lanard said also that federal delays could even preclude Cape Wind from being the first offshore wind development in the United States.  The nation’s first project, he said, could “be in state waters, due to the current federal regulatory structure …. probably Block Island or Fisherman’s Energy off of Atlantic City.”

Lanard expressed his belief that the offshore wind industry should have fundamentally different oversight from fossil fuel-based industries.

“The offshore wind industry as a whole cannot get caught up in same regulatory regime as oil and gas,” he said.  “Offshore wind does not need the same level of scrutiny as fossil fuels because the threat to the environment in not even comparable … there could never be a BP of offshore wind.”

Based in Washington, DC, the group launched in July with backing from the American Wind Energy Association and currently counts seven major offshore wind developers as members. Those members, Apex Wind, Cape Wind, Deepwater Wind, Fishermen’s Energy, NRG Bluewater Wind, OffshoreMW, and Seawind Renewable, all currently have projects in planning or development stages throughout the United States, including the Great Lakes and several spots on the Atlantic Coast.

According to Lanard, OffshoreWindDC is in the process of leasing office space and adding staff. Lanard is currently the chair and only employee of the coalition, but he says that he hopes to add 4-5 staff members to fill various positions in the coming months.

“Essentially, we can remain a small and focused organization because we will have access to the resources of all coalition members,” Lanard said.

The seeds for the Coalition were sown roughly a year ago when offshore wind developers realized that they needed an advocacy group exclusively dedicated to the burgeoning offshore wind industry. Lanard, who at the time worked as the Managing Director at Deepwater Wind, secured the blessing of his employer and began working with AEWA and the interested developers.

“Deepwater Wind is proud to be a founding member of this coalition,” Deepwater Wind CEO and Managing Director William M. Moore said in a statement.  ”We’re confident Jim will provide leadership and advocacy on behalf of America’s burgeoning offshore wind industry.”