Wind power in Virginia is in the early stages of development. In March 2015,Virginia became the first state in the United States to receive a wind energy research lease to build and operateoffshore wind turbines in federal waters.[1] Virginia has no utility scale wind farms.
TheVirginia Clean Economy Act of 2020 directs the construction of 16,100 MW of solar power and onshore wind and up to 5,200 MW of offshore wind by 2035, bringing the state's utility-delivered power to100% renewable energy by 2045.[2]
The Virginia Offshore Wind Development Authority was created by 2010 legislation to facilitate, coordinate, and support development of the offshore wind energy industry, offshore wind energy projects, and supply chain vendors and to ways to encourage and expedite offshore wind industry development. It attempts to collectmetocean and environmental data, identify regulatory and administrative barriers, work with government agencies to upgrade port and logistic facilities and sites, and ensure development is compatible with other ocean uses and avian/marine wildlife.[3]
Sponsored by the Department of Energy, theWind for Schools program has installed small scale wind turbines for educational use at schools throughout state to encourages the incorporation ofrenewable energy education into the K-12 science curriculum through the Virginia Center for Wind atJames Madison University[4][5][6] and built by Baker Renewable Energy. The first went up atNorthumberland Middle and High School atHeathsville. Other locations includeLuray High School[7] andChesapeake High School.[8] In 2012 turbines were installed at Central High School inWoodstock and Thomas Harrison Middle School inHarrisonburg.[9]
Rocky Forge Wind was announced in 2015 and originally planned scheduled to be operational by 2017; delays have set back the projected opening.[10][11][12]
The Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project (VOWTAP) is a program to establishoffshore wind farms in theAtlantic Ocean off the coast of Virginia.[13] In May 2014,Dominion Virginia Power was awarded $47 million from the United States Department of Energy (DOE) to help fund the construction of a 12-megawatt demonstration project, consisting of two 6-megawatt offshore wind turbines.[14] It intended to have them in full operation in 2017, but postponed the project since the single bid for construction was too high.[15] Some exploratory boring off the coast has taken place.[16] It was later renamedCoastal Virginia Offshore Wind.
| Wind farm | OffshoreBOEM wind energy lease area | States | Coordinates | Capacity (MW) | Completion year | Turbines | Developer/Utility | Regulatory agency | Refs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind - Pilot Project | Offshore Virginia OCS-A 0497[17] | 25 nautical miles east ofCape Henry (VA) | 2,135 acres (864 ha) | VA | 36°53′30″N75°29′30″W / 36.89167°N 75.49167°W /36.89167; -75.49167 (Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind - Pilot) | 12 | 2020 | 2 x 6MW Siemens Gamesa SWT-6.0-154 | Ørsted Dominion Energy | Virginia Department of Mines Minerals and Energy (DMME) BOEM | [18][19][20][21][22] |
| Wind power by state |
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| Large wind farms | ||
| Offshore wind farms |
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| Wind power companies | ||
