Wind Power, Key to Democrats’ Climate-Change Goals, Faces a Crisis

Instead of gathering momentum, the industry is confronting obstacles that could hinder its ability to realize the renewable resource’s promised benefits

By Patrick McGeehan in The NY Times. Excerpts:

"Four projects that were supposed to provide electricity to New York City and its suburbs are in limbo after being denied big increases in subsidies. And on Tuesday, the world’s biggest developer of offshore wind farms shocked New Jersey officials by backing out of two projects off the state’s southern coast. “Macroeconomic factors” including inflation and rising interest rates had made the projects too expensive, the company said."

"President Biden’s goal of creating 30 gigawatts of offshore wind nationally by 2030."

"“Frankly, even by this past summer we were recognizing the inevitability of missing the 30-by-30 target,” said Kris Ohleth, director of the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind, a nonprofit organization that advises companies and policymakers."

"“The public is turning very sour on this because they’re realizing just how expensive offshore wind is,” said Jonathan A. Lesser, an economist affiliated with the conservative Manhattan Institute who is a critic of offshore-wind development. “On the other hand, you’ve got politicians in those states who seem to be totally committed to offshore wind regardless of the costs.”"

"Complaining of rising costs and disruptions in the supply chain for parts and equipment, Orsted and the developers of those projects, Equinor and BP, asked New York officials to pay considerably more than agreed to — $12 billion more — for the power they would generate. Without the increases, the companies said, they might not be able to build the wind farms.

The requests highlighted the balancing act regulators face between protecting utility customers and trying to wean the state off generators fueled by natural gas. But rather than strike a compromise, New York’s Public Service Commission denied the requests, holding the companies to the terms of their contracts."

"Ms. Hochul and other state officials have suggested that New York could still meet its targets for renewable energy. But industry analysts say that is unlikely.

Mr. Fox, the ClearView Energy Partners analyst, estimated that New York’s refusal to increase the subsidies would cause a delay of one to three years for those projects. They were scheduled to be online by 2025, at the earliest."