US Interior Department proposes first-ever offshore wind sale in Gulf of Mexico
The US Department of the Interior is proposing the first-ever offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico.
The proposed sale notice (PSN) includes a 102,480-acre area offshore Lake Charles, Louisiana, and two areas offshore Galveston, Texas, one comprising 102,480 acres and the other comprising 96,786 acres. BOEM is seeking public comments on which, if any, of the two lease areas offshore Galveston should be offered in the final sale notice.
BOEM is also seeking feedback on several lease stipulations that would include providing bidding credits to bidders that commit to supporting workforce training programs for the offshore wind industry, developing a domestic supply chain for the offshore wind industry, or a combination of both; establishing and contributing to a fisheries compensatory mitigation fund or contributing to an existing fund to mitigate potential negative impacts to commercial and for-hire recreational fisheries caused by offshore wind development in the Gulf of Mexico; and requiring that lessees provide a regular progress report summarizing engagement with Tribes and ocean users potentially affected by proposed offshore wind activities.
The PSN will be published in the Federal Register later this month, initiating a 60-day public comment period. If the Department of the Interior decides to proceed with the sale, BOEM will publish a final sale notice at least 30 days ahead of the sale, which would announce the time and date of the lease sale and the companies qualified to participate in it.
