MAINE DEEPWATER OFFSHORE WIND PROJECT RECEIVES SIGNIFICANT BOOST FROM DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

MAINE DEEPWATER OFFSHORE WIND PROJECT RECEIVES SIGNIFICANT BOOST FROM DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


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“The funding announced today is the key to the ignition of one of the most exciting projects ever undertaken by the State of Maine.  And that key was presented to us by Senator Collins.  In all my years at the University of Maine, I have never seen one of our elected officials work so skillfully and tirelessly to achieve a singular goal.  Senator Collins saw what we saw -- a project with potential to generate vast amounts of clean energy and to create good jobs and spark economic development – and she made it happen.  We cannot thank her enough."
 --Dr. Habib Dagher, Director of the University of Maine's Composites Center

 The Department of Energy (DOE) contacted Senator Susan Collins today to inform her that the Department will make a significant grant award to the University of Maine team working to develop a deepwater floating offshore wind energy project off the Coast of Maine. This is the culmination of years of efforts by Senator Collins to secure funding to support the University’s research and development that will result in good-paying jobs for thousands of Mainers.

“I am thrilled that the innovative deepwater offshore wind initiative, New England Aqua Ventus I, led by the University of Maine, is one of just seven projects from nearly 70 teams that initially expressed interest, selected by the U.S. Department of Energy for this competitive federal grant. This extremely important announcement is a vital step that could eventually help harness the vast potential of deepwater offshore wind energy and lead to the potential creation of some 20,000 new jobs,” said Senator Collins, who has been a long-time supporter of the deepwater offshore wind initiative at UMaine and championed it at the federal level.
The UMaine-led project will receive up to $4 million to complete the engineering, design and permitting phase of this award. The project will then compete for one of three additional awards of up to $47 million over four years to focus on siting, construction and installation and that aim to achieve commercial operation by the year 2017.
New England Aqua Ventus I is comprised of the Universities of Maine and Massachusetts as well as the Maine Maritime Academy; Iberdrola, the largest wind developer in the world; Ershigs, Inc, the largest composite material fabricator in the U.S.; Central Maine Power; T.Y. Lin International, a leader in pre-stressed concrete design; Cianbro, Bath Iron Works and Maine engineering firms; Portsmouth Naval Shipyard; and Technip, which manufactured the first floating wind turbine hull in the world. Earlier this year, New England Aqua Ventus I, submitted a proposal to DOE to move forward with a plan to build a commercial offshore wind farm off the coast of New England. Given its significant work and advancements in research in this area, under the leadership of Dr. Dagher and the University of Maine, the New England Aqua Ventus I application was well positioned to compete for this significant federal investment.
Senator Collins has been the leading supporter of the New England Aqua Ventus I proposal submitted by the University of Maine and their partners. In July 2012, Senator Collins wrote to U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, urging support for the Aqua Ventus application. At Senator Collins’ request, both Secretary Chu and U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar have visited the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center in Orono.

(Pictured Above: Dr.Habib Dagher, President of U. Maine's

 Composites Center; Senator Collins, Energy Secretary Chu)

In June 2010, Senator Collins invited Secretary Chu to visit the University of Maine's Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center to learn more about its cutting-edge, deepwater, offshore wind energy research program. Senator Collins and Secretary Chu spent the day touring the facility, meeting with stakeholders, and talking with Maine energy exhibitors at a technology fair at the lab. Following that visit, the Department of Energy announced that it would dedicate $20 million to develop and test deepwater offshore wind technologies-the first time ever that the Department has dedicated specific funding for deepwater offshore wind energy research and development. As a member of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Collins has worked to help ensure that this funding would be awarded to UMaine.
Prior to today’s grant award, Senator Collins had already helped secure a total of $25 million in federal funding for Maine’s Deepwater Offshore Wind Initiative. In October 2009, DOE awarded an $8 million grant to UMaine to support its efforts. Also, in January 2010, the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology awarded $12.4 million for construction of a new Advanced Nanocomposites in Renewable Energy Laboratory at the University’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center. In addition, Senator Collins helped secure $5 million in funding for this initiative as part of the Fiscal Year 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations bill, which was signed into law on October 28, 2009.

(Pictured Above: Senator Collins, Interior Secretary Salazar)

On March 14, 2012, Senator Collins attended the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee hearing with Secretary Chu to discuss how Congress and DOE can work together to advance new solutions to meet the nation’s energy challenges, particularly DOE's efforts to advance deepwater offshore wind technology.

 Senator Collins also stressed the importance of developing offshore wind technology and praised the work being done in Maine on February 29, 2012 at a Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee hearing with the Secretary of the Interior Salazar.