The US Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) is preparing to hold the auction of the wind energy lease area off the coast of New York on 15 December, as planned.
Namely, the wind lease sale was said to be delayed last week following a complaint filed to the federal court by fishing groups. However, BOEM stated that it is expected to be held according to schedule as the “court has not yet ruled on plaintiffs’ motion to delay auction.”
The complaint was submitted on Thursday to the federal court in Washington, D.C. by Fisheries Survival Fund, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, the city of New Bedford, Massachusetts, and groups representing scallop and squid fishermen, according to Associated Press .
The companies participating in the upcoming commercial wind lease sale of 79,350 acres offshore New York include DONG Energy, innogy, Iberdrola’s Avangrid Renewables, EDF Renewable Development, Statoil Wind US, wpd offshore Alpha, Deepwater Wind Hudson Canyon, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), Fishermen’s Energy, Sea Breeze Energy, CI-II NY Inc, Energy Management, Inc, Convalt Energy, and Clean Power Northeast Development.
The area starts approximately 11.5 nautical miles (nm) from Jones Beach, NY. From its western edge, the area extends approximately 24 nm southeast at its longest portion. The lease area consists of five full Outer Continental Shelf blocks and 143 sub-blocks.