“In areas where wind farms are being developed, invasive species can harm … industries by reducing fish populations, damaging habitats, and deterring tourists who seek intact and diverse marine environments.” – Kieran Kelly, Ocean Integrity (below)

‘It is hard being green, particularly when “green” means being one-dimensional against carbon dioxide (CO2) at the expense of virtually every other metric. Consider wind power, the onshore problems of which (failed past, government dependency, intermittency, site depletion, local warming, noise, avian mortality, health effects) are only magnified offshore (cost premium, wake effect, blade failure, industrialization, hurricanes, pile driving, political bribes).

Kieran Kelly, CEO of Ocean Integrity, “a global organization that aims to reduce ocean plastic pollution and create positive social impact,” recently reported on social media about a particular ecological issue: invasive filter feeders.…

“Modern wind farms are reliable, safe, state-of-the-art power plants with well-tested technologies that meet approved standards and hundreds of thousands of hours of operating experience,” the U.S. Department of Energy states. Except when they fail under normal conditions–or abnormal ones.

“Wind Turbines Destroyed by Typhoon Yagi,” read one recent headline. This (during peak hurricane season 2024) has wind power in the (not-so-good) news. Not only were older turbines destroyed by the 150 mile-per-hour typhoon (Category 4 in hurricane terms); new “more efficient typhoon-resistant versions” were leveled too. For multi-million dollar structures, the risk and the cost of insurance are major issues.

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The U.S. offshore wind industry will be spared–but only because of projects that have been abandoned or delayed. But what would happen if such naked structures are built, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico or off the Atlantic Coast?…

This post updates the financial troubles of Denmark’s Ørsted, recent BOEM auctions, and pushback against Maryland governor Wes Moore. Today, operational offshore wind capacity is less than 50 megawatts versus the Biden-Harris Administration goal of 30,000 MW by 2030.

Ørsted

Denmark’s Ørsted, the worldwide leading offshore wind developer, recorded a $575 million loss in the second quarter. In part, the loss is the result of disappointing developments in the U.S.

The company has delayed commercial operation of its 704-MW Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut from 2025 to 2026. Ørsted’s ambitious U.S. offshore wind program has been lagging, despite solid support (subsidies, permits) from the Biden administration.

A year after an Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) auction for Gulf of Mexico leases failed to attract significant interest, BOEM continues to delay another attempt to find adequate bidders off the east coast.…

“The Biden Administration’s offshore wind ambition, not only Vineyard Wind, is going the way of the EV debacle. It is time to end the charade, even before the Presidential election.”

All the current political news is keeping this week’s implosion of the fledgling U.S. offshore wind industry off the front pages. “Vineyard Wind shut down after turbine failure sends ‘sharp fiberglass shards’ onto Nantucket beaches,” reported CBS News out of Boston. The worst case event could spell the end of another Biden anti-economic, anti-ecology “climate” program, with only the 132 MW South Fork Wind project off the coast of Long Island under construction.

Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, was at the 10-turbine, 136 MW mark of a planned 62 turbines totaling 806 MW. GE Wind (formerly Enron Wind), the blade-maker, is in trouble too.…