Californian Port Unveils Concept for USD 4.7 Billion Offshore Wind Turbine Assembly Hub

The Port of Long Beach has released plans to build an offshore floating wind facility, known as Pier Wind, that would support the manufacture and assembly of offshore wind turbines.

The offshore wind facility would span up to 400 acres of newly built land located southwest of the Long Beach International Gateway Bridge within the Harbor District.

Construction could potentially start in January 2027, with the first 100 acres operational in early 2031, the second 100 acres operational in late 2031, and the last 200 acres coming online in 2035.

The Port’s concept study provides information to continue planning discussions with state and federal officials, developers, and funders for the USD 4.7 billion project.

Pier Wind would also create new jobs and career opportunities for the communities closest to the Port that have been impacted by climate change and port operations.

“Imagine fully assembled wind turbines capable of generating 20 megawatts of energy towed by sea from the Port of Long Beach to offshore wind farms in Central and Northern California,” said Mario Cordero, Port of Long Beach Executive Director.

“As society transitions to clean energy, our harbor is ideally located for such an enterprise – with calm seas behind a federal breakwater, one of the deepest and widest channels in the U.S., direct access to the open ocean and no air height restrictions. No other location has the space to achieve the economies of scale needed to drive down the cost of energy for these huge turbines.”

The project could contribute toward lowering the national cost of offshore wind power by 70 per cent by 2035 and help meet the state’s goal of producing 25 GW of offshore wind power by 2045.

Back in December 2022, the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) selected the winners of California’s first offshore wind lease sale.

RWE Offshore Wind Holdings, Equinor Wind US, Invenergy California Offshore, California North Floating (Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners), and Central California Offshore Wind (Ocean Winds) won the rights to develop floating wind projects across five lease areas in Humboldt Bay and Morro Bay, off the northern and central coasts of California, respectively. The five areas have an installation capacity of around 4.5 GW.

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