Floating wind farm focus of public hearings
A Norwegian company that last year proposed a pilot offshore wind farm south of Boothbay Harbor is planning to hold public meetings this month to share details of the project. The company has been testing a floating offshore wind turbine since 2009 and wants to test the technology in Maine.
Statoil will hold meetings June 25 in Boothbay, June 26 in Rockland and June 27 in Portland, according to the Portland Press Herald. Statoil officials first came to Maine in 2009 to scope out a project site. Last October, it filed a federal application, which a federal Bureau of Energy Management task force began reviewing in December. Its turbines, which Statoil has been testing in Norway, are not anchored to the ocean floor but rather float on the ocean's surface.
The company plans to share with the public updates on its progress on environmental studies and other permitting requirements. It won't make a decision about whether to move ahead until 2014. If it does pursue the project, called Hywind Maine, the company hopes to make the turbines operational by 2016. Hywind Maine would be the country's first deepwater floating wind farm.
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments