Mayflower Wind Wins Massachusetts’ Second Offshore Wind Procurement

Image via Pixabay

Massachusetts officials selected the 804-megawatt Mayflower Wind offshore wind farm as the winner of its second offshore wind procurement. The project, a joint venture of Shell New Energies and EDPR Offshore North America, will be located 20 miles south of Nantucket and is anticipated to begin commercial operations in 2025.

The two developers had submitted four proposed projects for consideration. The selection follows a request for proposal, which evaluated bids based on economic benefits for ratepayers, the project’s ability to foster employment and economic development in the commonwealth, as well as its environmental impacts. Specifically, the project will have long-term prices below the original price cap of $84.23/MWh, will provide $3.7 billion in electricity rate reduction over the term of the contract, will create up to 10,000 jobs in Massachusetts in offshore and onshore opportunities and will translate in the elimination of 1.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, the equivalent of taking 350,000 cars of the road.

Mayflower Wind’s final contract with the state’s distribution utilities is expected to be finalized in December. The procurement is expected to fulfill the second half of the Legislature’s 2016 authorization of 1,600 megawatts of wind power. Vineyard Wind—which has already been selected for the state’s first 800MW procurement—and Bay State Wind, also submitted proposals for the second round of procurement.

Should both Vineyard Wind I and Mayflower Wind be completed as planned, they will provide approximately 12 percent of Massachusetts’ total annual energy demand.