New Jersey will receive a $125 million settlement from developer Ørsted after it canceled two wind projects offshore the state, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities said in a Tuesday release.
“Pursuant to the settlement, the State and Ørsted have agreed to release claims against each other arising out of or related to the Ocean Wind Projects,” the BPU said. In November, Gov. Phil Murphy, D, had told reporters the state would “fight like hell to keep” all $300 million of a forfeiture guarantee which Ørsted had originally agreed to, according to NJBiz.
The canceled projects, Ocean Wind 1 and 2, represented a planned capacity of 1,100 MW and 1,148 MW respectively.
The $125 million settlement “will be used to support investments in qualified wind energy facilities, investments in offshore wind component manufacturing facilities, and other clean energy programs to achieve the State’s clean energy goals under the Energy Master Plan,” the BPU said.
The state is also significantly accelerating the timeline for its fifth offshore wind solicitation, and plans to open it for bidding in the second quarter of 2025 instead of the third quarter of 2026 as originally planned.
“New Jersey’s economic and environmental future depends on the bold action we take today to secure billions of dollars in economic benefits and a significant reduction in emissions from the electric sector,” BPU President Christine Guhl-Sadovy said in the release.
New Jersey’s fourth solicitation, which will seek to award between 1.2 GW and 4 GW of capacity, will open in July.
The BPU also announced Tuesday that following the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s finalization of Order 1920, a transmission and cost allocation reform rule, the state “will pause on moving forward with the Second State Agreement Approach for coordinated offshore wind transmission planning with [PJM].”
“Pausing at this time affords Board staff the opportunity to fully evaluate the implications of the new FERC rule and participate in PJM’s process to ensure the best outcome to meet New Jersey’s transmission needs at the least cost to ratepayers,” the BPU said.
And the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on Tuesday released final environmental impact statements for two other wind projects offshore New Jersey — Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind Project 1 and 2, known collectively as the Atlantic Shores South Wind Project and representing 2.8 GW of potential generation.
