US DOE Issues USD 18.5 Million Offshore Wind R&D Consortium Funding

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has officially announced a USD 18.5 million funding for an offshore wind R&D consortium that will conduct U.S.-specific research aimed at reducing the cost of offshore wind in the states.

The U.S. Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium will be a cooperative private-public innovation hub addressing topics such as wind plant technology advancement, resource and physical site characterization, installation, operations and maintenance, and supply chain technology solutions.

Under this competitive funding opportunity announcement, DOE intends to select an administrator to coordinate the collaborative R&D activities conducted by the consortium.

The consortium will include members of the offshore wind industry, who will contribute funds and use the research findings to further advance technologies. In addition to the USD 18.5 million funding, USD 2 million will also be allocated to research at DOE’s national laboratories to support the activities.

Although the U.S. is capitalizing on momentum in the offshore wind market with its first commercial offshore wind project, the Block Island wind farm, and additional proposed projects, the country has several specific challenges that require industry-wide collaboration to reduce costs, DOE said.

“As the former Governor of one of the largest wind producing states, I know the value of wind power in our energy portfolio,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry.

“This work will further DOE’s goal to accelerate the development of offshore wind technologies by supporting fundamental research to reduce the costs of offshore wind energy to successfully compete in regional energy markets.”