New Jersey has awarded more than $1 billion in onshore grid expansion and upgrade projects needed to deliver 7,500 MW from proposed offshore wind farms using a novel “transmission-first” approach that the state said would lower costs, reduce project delays and minimize environmental and local community impacts.
In a long-awaited decision, the state Board of Public Utilities unanimously approved on Oct. 28 a $504-million project proposed by Mid-Atlantic Offshore Development, a venture of utility Jersey Central Power and Light and developers Shell New Energies and EDF Renewables North America. It involves building a new substation at the utility’s existing Larrabee substation in central New Jersey, which would be the single interconnection point for board-approved offshore wind projects.