May 1, 2024

The Biden administration was rolling out final rules in rapid succession this past week, likely to get ahead of the time frame set by the Congressional Review Act, in case Republicans take full control next year. Those included EPA’s long-awaited power plant rule, which if fully implemented will lead to the practical extinction of coal-fired electricity in the U.S. They also included the White House CEQ’s changes to the permitting process under NEPA in a bid to improve coordination between agencies and speed up approvals.

It wouldn’t be a week in NetZero Insider news without offshore wind though, and we had plenty. BOEM is moving ahead with plans to auction wind energy leases with a potential 18-GW capacity off the coasts of Oregon and the Gulf of Maine, and the New Jersey BPU opened its fourth solicitation, with a planned capacity of up to 4 GW. The 1st Circuit, meanwhile, affirmed the denial of two challenges to environmental approvals of the Vineyard Wind 1 project under construction off the coast of Massachusetts. 

Is that not enough about offshore wind for you? Well, John Cropley was in New Orleans last week for Oceantic Network’s International Partnering Forum, and he wrote a lot, beginning with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland’s announcement of her department’s new five-year schedule for as many as a dozen new offshore wind energy lease auctions and an update of its regulations on development. Check out more of John’s extensive coverage below: 

• Central Atlantic Region Prepares for OSW Development 

• How Best to Address OSW’s Effects on Fisheries 

• Louisiana Manufacturers Expand into Offshore Wind 

• Moving Offshore Wind Beyond Contract Cancellations 

• New York Starts Another OSW Rebound 

• Offshore Wind Sector Leaders Emphasize Tailwinds 

• Voices of the OSW Supply Chain, as Heard at Trade Show 

And here’s some more of what happened this past week: 

• Calif. Regulators Assess Benefits, Social Costs of Energy Transition 

• Constellation Increases Costs of Proposed Everett Agreements 

• DOE CITAP Initiative Aims to Permit New Transmission in 2 Years 

• DOE: AI Critical for US Clean Energy, Grid Modernization Goals 

• EPA Antes up Nearly $1B to Replace Diesel Heavy-duty Vehicles 

• New Initiative Focuses on Interregional Tx Coordination in the Northeast 

• NY Reaches Deals for 2.4 GW of Onshore Renewables 

• Policymakers Chart FERC’s History of Opening the Grid for Competition 

• Wash. Sets Income Levels for Help with Buying or Leasing EVs 

See you next week!