Why Offshore Wind?
The United States can increase its use of wind power over the next two decades to supply twenty percent of the nation’s electricity without any technological breakthroughs, according to a first-of-its-kind report recently issued by the US Department of Energy (DOE). The report entitled, 20% Wind Energy by 2030, forecasts that target can be met with 300,000 megawatts of installed wind power in the United States assuming that electric demand also increases by 39 percent. According to the report, the DOE expects coastal states to harness 50,000 megawatts of offshore wind in shallow water depths of less than 100 feet. The report notes that shallow water offshore wind energy can provide 100 percent of the electricity supply in some coastal states.
The United States can increase its use of wind power over the next two decades to supply twenty percent of the nation’s electricity without any technological breakthroughs, according to a first-of-its-kind report recently issued by the US Department of Energy (DOE). The report entitled, 20% Wind Energy by 2030, forecasts that target can be met with 300,000 megawatts of installed wind power in the United States assuming that electric demand also increases by 39 percent. According to the report, the DOE expects coastal states to harness 50,000 megawatts of offshore wind in shallow water depths of less than 100 feet. The report notes that shallow water offshore wind energy can provide 100 percent of the electricity supply in some coastal states. In many respects, offshore wind is a “next step” improvement over onshore wind and represent a close-to-optimal use of wind energy: offshore wind speeds tend to be higher than onshore (which means more energy is available), and wind speeds are mor
