Partners evaluate feasibility of US West Coast offshore wind O&M port facility
Earlier this week, the Port San Luis Harbor District's board approved entering into a project evaluation agreement with Clean Energy Terminals (CET), a developer of offshore wind port facilities across the US.
The agreement enables the partners to jointly evaluate the technical and commercial feasibility of an offshore wind operations and maintenance (O&M) port facility in San Luis Obispo Bay. The facility could be utilized by multiple wind projects located in federal waters offshore California's Central Coast.
If an O&M facility is found to be feasible, the agreement also sets out a pathway for the partners to negotiate a lease option and subsequent long-term lease for the project's development and operations.
Project evaluation is expected to take between six and 18 months, with development of an O&M facility taking six-to-eight years in total, subject to permitting and the timing of California's offshore wind projects.
Any future lease option or long-term lease agreement will require a separate Harbor District board approval.
The partners, citing studies and public feedback, said smaller facilities (e.g., O&M ports) are better suited for the Central Coast. They said these kind of ports are typically no more than 5 acres in size and support vessels that come into port about once every other week.
CET is a US port developer that specializes in offshore wind projects with the capital and expertise to deliver an O&M port project from concept through operations. CET is developing a portfolio of wind ports across the US, working in partnership with public port authorities, harbor districts and local municipalities.
Brian Sabina, CEO of CET, said, "In partnership with the Port San Luis Harbor District, we are evaluating whether an O&M facility is technically feasible and, if so, how it can be most responsibly delivered."
If built, the partners said an O&M port facility would create a long-term link between the projects offshore California's Central Coast and the San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara County communities.
REACH President/CEO Melissa James added, "Offshore wind developers have invested more than $425 million into three projects off the Central Coast. With the right infrastructure, our region is uniquely positioned to serve as a small-scale operations and maintenance hub, transporting crews and equipment to the sites 20-plus miles offshore."
Fellow Endeavor Business Media brand, T&D World, recently detailed a plan that intends to deploy floating turbines offshore California's central and northern coasts to achieve 25,000 MW of capacity by 2045, enough to power 25 million homes. Read the full report: CEC Adopts Offshore Wind Energy Strategic Plan to Support California’s 100 Percent Clean Electricity Future | T&D World (tdworld.com).
