Statoil, a Norwegian energy company, is putting its $120 million investment in the Hywind power pilot project on hold indefinitely after the Maine Legislature passed a bill that would reopen bidding for power rates charged to Maine energy consumers.
The proposed project features four floating wind turbines 12 miles off the coast of the fishing town of Boothbay Harbor.
The Maine Public Broadcasting Network reports that if completed, the project could make Maine a national and international leader in the development of clean wind energy. It is also expected to create hundreds of jobs — at least 150 during the construction phase alone.
The New England coast has been identified as prime real estate for wind energy that could significantly reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil and domestic fossil fuels that pollute the environment. The Department of the Interior predicts that if fully developed, the Massachusetts and Rhode Island shores could produce 3,400 megawatts of electricity, enough clean energy to power more than 1 million homes.
The 4C Offshore, a wind farm database, reports that the Hywind project would be able to provide clean, renewable energy for 8,387 homes, while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 16,951 tons per year. Using data from the Environmental Protection Agency, this is the same as taking more than 3,300 vehicles off the road.
The Maine Legislature approved an electricity rate with Statoil in January, but Republican Gov. Paul LePage disagreed and encouraged last month’s passage of the legislation that effectively restarts the bidding process.
Officially, it’s not the end of the project, but supporters believe that it could effectively put the kibosh on the development because it forces the University of Maine to go back to the drawing board. The university now has until Sept. 1 to submit a new proposal, including a new energy company partner.
“The University of Maine is a great research institution and they have made so much progress in developing cutting edge technology,” said Maine Senate Majority Leader Seth Goodall, a Democrat, according to Maine Public Broadcasting Network. “They need a partner, an international company, an investor such as Statoil. The governor has been very clear that he’s against Statoil and he’s against offshore energy.”
Fiscal considerations remain the focus of the governor’s ongoing objection to the project in its current form.
“We really should be getting a maximum return on an investment of up to $200 million the ratepayers would be subsidizing,” said Patrick Woodcock, director of the Governor’s Energy Office, in a statement. “Frankly, when you look at Statoil’s term sheet, it did not deliver on a basic requirement of establishing an industrial base to manufacture and develop offshore wind.”
The Statoil withdrawal was announced by company Vice President Johannes Nordli in a letter following the bill’s passage.
“Statoil interprets it to mean that the future of any contract for the Hywind Maine Project is in doubt, and that any final approval of such a contract would not occur by this summer as anticipated,” Nordli wrote.