OPSB okays Icebreaker offshore wind project, lists 33 conditions

The Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB) has approved the construction of the Icebreaker offshore wind project in Lake Erie, but with certain conditions.

Under the terms of the conditioned certificate, Icebreaker must comply with 33 conditions prior, during, and after project construction, as well as during operations.

Among the conditions, the 20.7 MW project must shut down the turbines during nighttime hours from 1 March to 1 November as an initial bird and bat risk mitigation measure.

The project developer must conduct radar studies and, based on which, provide OPSB with a bird and bat impact mitigation plan, including a collision monitoring plan.

Icebreaker can seek, through a public process, to modify the turbine feathering condition once it has collected and submitted actual monitoring information.

“After a thorough review of the record, the OPSB today authorized a certificate that provides an opportunity for the project to move forward in accordance with specified conditions that are responsive to our statutory responsibilities and the public interest,” said OPSB Chairman Sam Randazzo.

“The conditions are responsive to the issues raised and evidence presented in this contested proceeding. As the Icebreaker project represents the first of its kind in North America, the order approved by the Board today includes a public and transparent data collection and submission process to better inform the Board stakeholders and the public on questions and risks related to the construction and operation of the turbines.” 

Icebreaker will comprise six MHI Vestas turbines with a nameplate capacity rating of 3.45 MW located some 10 miles offshore Cleveland.

Once commissioned, the 20.7 MW project will be the first fresh-water wind energy installation in North America.