The US government’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved the construction and operations plan for a 2.4GW offshore wind farm in Massachusetts in the final days of outgoing president Joe Biden’s tenure. This is the final BOEM approval needed for the SouthCoast Wind project following the US interior department’s record of decision in December 2024.
SouthCoast Wind s being developed by offshore wind specialist Ocean Winds at a marine site around 37km south of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
BOEM’s approval paves the way for construction of up to 141 wind turbines – implying an average power rating of about 17MW – and up to five offshore substation platforms.
The approval was announced on Friday (17 January), just three days before the scheduled inauguration of Republican president-elect Donald Trump today (20 January). Trump has vowed to end offshore wind development on the first day of his presidency.
BOEM’s director Elizabeth Klein addressed the outgoing Democrat administration’s record on offshore wind on announcing the approval, stating BOEM was “proud” of the government’s record.
She added: “Under the Biden-Harris administration, we have made remarkable strides in advancing a clean energy economy, including approving more than 19GW of offshore wind energy.”
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