Dive Brief:
- Massachusetts officials on Wednesday selected Mayflower Wind to provide the state with 804 MW of offshore wind capacity. The project will be located 20 miles south of Nantucket and is expected to begin operations in 2025.
- Once contracts are signed, Massachusetts will have procured the 1,600 MW of offshore capacity required by a 2016 state law. The state is considering adding more: in June the Department of Energy Resources (DOER) recommended an additional 1,600 MW procurement.
- Mayflower is a joint venture of Shell New Energies and EDPR Offshore North America. Long-term prices for the project's energy are expected to be below the legally required price cap of $84.23/MWh, according to a statement from the company.
Dive Insight:
Mayflower Wind Energy submitted four proposals in response to Massachusetts' request, and the state ultimately selected the "Low Cost Energy" option. Officials have yet to release a final cost of the project because negotiations are ongoing.
In a statement, officials said the project was determined to "provide the greatest overall value to Massachusetts customers." Mayflower Wind's proposal offered "a more competitive price with greater economic development opportunities."
Other Mayflower proposals included a smaller wind project, investment in Massachusetts' ports, and an investment in a manufacturing facility to make wind towers.
Mayflower Wind's selection "concludes a rigorous solicitation," the state said, which was evaluated by DOER and Massachusetts utilities Eversource, National Grid and Unitil.
According to Mayflower, the project will reduce electricity rates $3.7 billion over the term of the contract while eliminating 1.7 million metric tons CO2 emissions annually.
The 800 MW Vineyard Wind 1 project won the first procurement under Massachusetts' Energy Diversity Act of 2016. State officials said the combined energy output of the selected projects represents approximately 12% of the state's annual energy demand.
