The Biden-Harris administration, through the US Department of Energy (DOE), yesterday announced plans to use $30 million from President Biden’s bipartisan Infrastructure Act to fund research projects. and development that will reduce the costs of onshore and offshore wind energy projects to benefit communities across the country. Wind energy accounted for more than 9% of total national electricity production in 2021 and will play an important role in achieving the goals of achieving 100% clean electricity by 2035 and a net zero emissions economy. 2050.
“Wind energy is abundant, locally produced, affordable and already provides enough electricity to power 40 million homes,” said US Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm. “But that’s just the beginning – wind power is poised for explosive growth. Through President Biden’s bipartisan Infrastructure Act, DOE is helping break down technology barriers to accelerate the deployment of this affordable resource nationwide.”
These investments, along with the Curbing Inflation Act, which provides market certainty and incentives for the manufacture of domestic wind power components, are intended to strengthen the continuous growth of wind energy and reinforce its key role as a clean energy source made in the United States. The investments also bolster the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to revive the U.S. offshore wind industry and achieve 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power by 2030, enough to power 10 million homes with energy. clean, support tens of thousands of jobs and stimulate the private sector. investments up and down the supply chain.
Notice of Intent (NOI) to Issue Bipartisan Infrastructure Act Funding for Reducing Barriers to Offshore, Onshore, and Distributed Wind Deployment
Applicants to the next $28 million funding opportunity must submit projects that support the following initiatives:
- Advance the technologies needed to transmit large amounts of electricity from offshore wind over long distances. Funding in this area ($9.7 million) will support high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission standards for offshore wind, develop and validate innovative controls to ensure reliability and compatibility with alternating current and direct current, and will identify and fill gaps in education. and training the workforce to support the deployment of HVDC transmission for US offshore wind.
- Helping coastal communities benefit from offshore wind development through social science research and community engagement. Funding in this area ($6.9 million) will help characterize the economic and other impacts of offshore wind development on local communities and support research that enables communities to better participate in and benefit from offshore wind development.
- Improve permitting processes to make distributed wind energy more accessible to communities where distributed wind can be deployed cost-effectively and equitably. Distributed wind power, which is a source of wind power for nearby homes, farms, schools and businesses, can help communities transition to low-carbon energy. However, established zoning and permitting processes for distributed wind power are not present in all municipalities, and others have stringent requirements that discourage development. To reduce costs and accelerate the equitable deployment of community clean energy, funding in this area ($3.3 million) will support innovative zoning and permitting approaches for distributed wind projects that leverage successes in license reform for distributed solar PV that work for communities and industry.
- Improve technologies that help bats avoid wind turbines as industry strives to minimize impacts on local wildlife and ecosystems. Funding in this area ($8 million) will support bat behavior research, technology development and field trials to advance bat deterrent technologies.
Read the full Notice of Intent for the upcoming funding opportunity at EERE exchange.
Request for mooring and mooring information (RFI)
In support of the Earthshot Floating Offshore Wind Energy and to inform $2.5 million in future R&D funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, DOE published an RFI on research needs for anchors and mooring systems that secure floating offshore wind structures to the sea floor in deep water.
The Biden-Harris administration has set an objective to deploy 15 GW of floating offshore wind by 2035, enough to power 5 million homes with clean energy, while supporting the state’s deployment of offshore wind and bringing these economic opportunities to more of regions. The information obtained from the RFI will inform future work funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act to advance floating offshore wind toward profitable domestic commercialization and manufacturing, including technologies that hold floating turbines in place at sea.
Read the RFI on EERE exchange. Responses must be submitted by December 19, 2022.
These investments will complement work in progress at the DOE to enable the innovations needed to advance America’s wind systems, reduce the cost of electricity, and accelerate the deployment of wind energy. Learn more about the Wind Energy Technology Office in the DOEs Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.