The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is moving forward with the next step in offshore wind energy development off the Virginia coast, Gov. Bob McDonnell and federal officials announced today.
The agency is publishing the call for information and nominations aimed at industry interest in locations off the Virginia coast for commercial wind energy leases, the first step in the leasing process. It describes the areas that will be made available and solicits expression of interest from developers.
Developers will have 45 days to respond to the call. Once responses are received, the bureau will determine whether their leasing process will be competitive or non-competitive.
The govenor's comments came as Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced in Baltimore that a recently completed review is a major step toward developing wind energy off the coasts of Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, and New Jersey.
Salazar said an environmental impact assessment found no significant problems with issuing wind power leases in areas off the mid-Atlantic coast.
The Mid-Atlantic lease proposal follows the Cape Wind project in Massachusetts that was given the go-ahead in 2010 after years of federal review. That project is still in development.
(This has been a breaking news update. Check back for more details as they become available. Read more in tomorrow's Richmond Times-Dispatch.)
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