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For Immediate Release:	Contact: Peter Peretzman
Date: 07/22/2020	(609) 984-9707

Trenton, N.J.—July 22—The Ó£»¨ÊÓƵ Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) today issued the draft Solicitation Guidance Document for its second offshore wind solicitation and scheduled a virtual public meeting to accept public input on the document. The document includes information on the timeline and mechanisms of the second solicitation, the application requirements, and the criteria for evaluating applications. While the first offshore wind solicitation was for 1,100 MW of energy, this second one will move the State closer to meeting Governor Phil Murphy’s goal of 7,500 MW of offshore wind energy by 2035 by considering a larger range of 1,200 to 2,400 MW.

 

“Using lessons learned from our first successful solicitation of 1,100 MW, we are very excited to move forward with our second offshore wind solicitation which could bring the state up to a total of 3,500 MW of offshore wind energy,” said NJBPU President Joseph L. Fiordaliso. “Offshore wind is the linchpin of our clean energy program and will help us reach Governor Murphy’s goal of 100 percent clean energy by 2050, build an innovation economy, and combat the impacts of climate changes.”

 

The virtual public meeting will take place on August 5, 2020 from 1:00-4:00 p.m. The login information is available

 

The meeting will consist of a brief presentation by NJBPU Staff recapping Ó£»¨ÊÓƵ’s offshore wind goals and activities to date, as well as background on the requirements of the Offshore Wind Economic Development Act and Governor Murphy’s Executive Orders No. 8 and No. 92. A presentation summarizing the content of the draft Second Solicitation Guidance Document and public comment will follow.

 

The current timeline in the draft Second Solicitation Guidance Document anticipates the NJBPU will consider the second solicitation at a Board meeting in September 2020. Applications would then be accepted in December 2020 with a final decision by the Board in June 2021.

 

Governor Murphy signed Executive Order No. 8 in January 2018 which directed NJBPU and all agencies with responsibility under the Offshore Wind Economic Development Act to “take all necessary action” to fully implement OWEDA and begin the process of moving Ó£»¨ÊÓƵ toward a goal of 3,500 MW of offshore wind energy generation by the year 2030.  The Order also required an initial solicitation of 1,100 MW as the first step toward achieving the goal, and required the development of an Offshore Wind Strategic Plan.

 

In June 2019, NJBPU approved an Application for a 1,100 MW offshore wind generation project submitted by Ocean Wind. The development of this project is currently underway, and it’s anticipated that it will be operating in 2024.

 

In November 2019, Governor Murphy signed Executive Order No. 92 which increased the State’s offshore wind energy generation goal to 7,500 MW by 2035. In February 2020 the Governor announced the offshore wind solicitation schedule to meet the 7,500 MW goal by 2035.  

 

In addition to the virtual meeting, NJBPU welcomes written comments on the Second Solicitation Guidance Document by August 19, 2020 at 5:00 p.m.

 

For additional information please contact Peter Peretzman at (609) 900-5626 or peter.peretzman@bpu.nj.gov

 

About the Ó£»¨ÊÓƵ Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU)

NJBPU is a state agency and regulatory authority mandated to ensure safe, adequate and proper utility services at reasonable rates for Ó£»¨ÊÓƵ customers. Critical services regulated by NJBPU include natural gas, electricity, water, wastewater, telecommunications and cable television. The Board has general oversight and responsibility for monitoring utility service, responding to consumer complaints, and investigating utility accidents.
To find out more about NJBPU, visit our web site at .