$11B Virginia Offshore Wind Project is Latest to Win Its Day in Court

A Norfolk, Va., federal district court docket choose on Jan. 16 granted the nation’s largest offshore wind venture now being constructed—the two.6-GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind—a reprieve from an ongoing federal shutdown, awarding the developer a preliminary injunction in opposition to the Dec. 22 order. The motion will permit development to proceed whereas the court docket considers deserves of the lawsuit filed by its developer, Dominion Vitality.

The choice instantly adopted a listening to on the request earlier than Decide Jamar Walker, who instructed attorneys for the U.S. Inside Dept. and venture proprietor Dominion that the company’s stop-work order, based mostly on “nationwide safety” dangers which might be claimed in a U.S. Protection Dept. report, was too broad to deal with the venture particularly and pertained to wind farm operation, not development. The venture is being constructed 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Seaside. 

Dominion Vitality and different builders stated that initiatives’ radar interference dangers have been beforehand recognized and mitigated in earlier phases of growth, with venture approvals given by the U.S. Protection Dept. 

The ruling follows two others this week within the Washington, D.C., federal district court docket that additionally reversed development halts—one on Jan. 12 in opposition to the 704-MW Revolution Wind venture being developed by Orsted between Connecticut and Rhode Island, and the opposite on Jan. 15 in opposition to the 810-MW Empire Wind, an Equinor venture off the New York coast. Attorneys basic from the three states filed separate lawsuits difficult the shutdowns as dangerous to state energy supply. 

Virginia officers didn’t do likewise for CVOW, with state political management in transition. However Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat with inauguration on Jan. 17, had beforehand criticized the shutdown, and outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin had supported the venture as wanted for energy provide.

Dominion stated it has thus far invested about $8.9 billion to construct the 176-turbine venture, about 60% full, with its complete price estimated at $11.2 billion. The corporate stated in its lawsuit that the shutdown was costing about $5 million per day. Building of CVOW’s turbine monopile foundations and its 12 offshore energy substation pin pile foundations is full, venture spokesman Jeremy Slayton confirmed to ENR,with set up of generators, every 14.7 MW, as a main exercise. 

The venture resumes operation of Charybdis, the primary U.S.-manufactured set up vessel that complies with present martime regulation for transporting elements however having preliminary operational points when delivered to the location final October. The 472-ft-long vessel contains a unique Dutch-made crane that may increase 2,200 tonnes.

Work additionally contains set up of about 365 miles of export cable and completion of three offshore substations to attach generated energy to the onshore grid, which Dominion stated may begin by the top of the primary quarter. 

“Our workforce will now concentrate on safely restarting work to make sure CVOW begins supply of essential power in simply weeks,” Dominion stated. “Whereas our authorized problem proceeds, we are going to proceed in search of a sturdy decision of this matter by means of cooperation with the federal authorities.” 

In what is taken into account an uncommon motion, grid operator PJM Interconnection, which regulates energy transmission in a 13-state area that features east coast states the place offshore wind initiatives are situated, filed a authorized transient in assist of CVOW’s lawsuit. 

With Its area together with Virginia, now a significant U.S. hub for present and future information facilities, the grid operator stated “quickly growing demand for … for brand new energy technology has change into more and more pressing,” including that CVOW “is an integral element of wanted new technology that PJM has been relying upon to well timed obtain business operation.” The operator stated that “given the scale of the venture and the lengthy lead occasions related to growth of alternate options, additional delay of the venture will trigger irreparable hurt to 67 million residents of this area who depend upon continued dependable supply of electrical energy.”

Sean McGarvey, president of the Nationwide Affiliation of Constructing Commerce Unions, whose members make up many of the initiatives’ main workforce and which additionally filed supporting authorized briefs within the three lawsuits, stated the group “applauds this week’s federal court docket rulings restarting U.S. offshore wind initiatives … so many [union] members can lastly return to job websites.”

In responding to the Virginia venture ruling, Trump administration spokeswoman Taylor Rogers repeated a earlier assertion that it expects “final victory” associated to its authorized claims, however she has not indicated whether or not the federal government will attraction the newest choice and the others. 

Rulings are nonetheless to come back on two different halted initiatives. The 924-MW Dawn Wind additionally in growth by Orsted to supply energy to New York however in earlier stage development and set to function in 2027, has a listening to date believed to be in early February within the D.C. federal district court docket. 

The 800-MW Winery Wind, with builders Copenhagen Infrastructure Companions and Avangrid that’s set to finish development of 62 generators in just a few months, filed go well with in U.S. district court docket in Boston on Jan. 15. No listening to date is but specified, however about half of its generators are working and have been allowed to proceed to ship energy below the shutdown order..