Massachusetts EFSB awards Vineyard Wind permit for construction of offshore wind farm interconnection to regional grid

The Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board, an independent state board responsible for review of proposed large energy facilities, has approved petitions filed by Vineyard Wind for construction and operation of electric transmission facilities within the Commonwealth that will deliver 800 MW of clean, renewable offshore wind energy to the regional power grid. Approval of the project’s transmission cables and interconnection substation by the EFSB, which administered by Department of Public Utilities staff and chaired by the Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, represents another significant milestone in the development of the United States’ first commercial-scale offshore wind generation facility.

In April, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities approved long-term power purchase contracts between Vineyard Wind and Massachusetts’ electric distribution companies (EDCs) for the delivery of clean offshore wind energy. The project continues to move ahead with public and regulatory review through more than 25 federal, state, and local approval processes. These include US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the Army Corps of Engineers, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, the Cape Cod Commission, the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, and local conservation commissions.

Vineyard Wind remains on schedule to begin on-shore construction in 2019 and become operational by 2021.

Source : STRATEGIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE, STEELGURU