Dear Members of Congress, The undersigned organizations represent a diverse group of voices, covering project developers, service and supply companies, and other advocates for domestic, reliable, and affordable renewable energy. Together, we respectfully request that both chambers preserve the House’s language repealing the 10-year moratorium on offshore wind leasing off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida in the final, conferenced version of the Senate’s The United States Innovation and Competition Act of 2022 and the House’s America COMPETES Act of 2022.
Offshore wind provides a generational opportunity for renewable energy development and domestic manufacturing jobs. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland has stated, “The demand for offshore wind energy has never been greater. Recent technological advances, falling costs, and tremendous economic potential make offshore wind a promising avenue for diversifying our national energy portfolio, creating good-paying union jobs, and tackling climate change...”[1] While much of the national focus has been on the prospects for “first-mover” projects in the northeastern United States, we also know that the southeast has great promise for offshore wind. For example, a sweeping Wood Mackenzie study last year stated that the Carolinas alone could see nearly $45 billion in capital investment and over 37,000 jobs supported annually over the next decade from offshore wind.[2]