Posted in energy policy, Offshore Wind, tagged BOEM, Gov. Kotek, Gov. Mills, Gulf of Maine, NEFSA, Oregon wind sale, wind sale on October 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »
The New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association (NEFSA) is sending the attached letter to Maine Gov. Janet Mills along with a petition with over 2,500 signatures urging her to halt the development of offshore wind farms in the Gulf of Maine.
A Gulf of Maine wind lease sale is scheduled for Oct. 29.
The NEFSA cites the 9/27 letter from Oregon Governor Kotek that resulted in cancellation of the Oregon wind sale that had been scheduled for Oct. 15.
Posted in Offshore Wind, tagged Hawaii offshore wind, Kaiwi Channel, Molokai, Oahu, opposition to offshore wind, sacred ground on October 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »
As indicated in the leasing schedule (above), a Hawaii offshore wind sale is scheduled for 2028. A recent article points to concerns from native Hawaiian communities about areas now under consideration. Presumably the concerns are with the potential for leasing in the Kaiwi (Molokai) Channel.
John Smith was the lead BOEM coordinator on the Hawaii task force before he retired in 2017. He is very familiar with the OCS wind potential offshore Hawaii. John worked with Progression, Alpha Wind and the Dept. of Defense on evaluating the best wind energy areas.
John and others on the task force agreed that the best location by far for Hawaiian wind development is 20-30 miles south of Oahu. However, the US Navy strongly opposed leasing there for national security reasons. Alternative locations in the Kaiwi channel between Oahu and Molokai are okay with the USN, but are otherwise problematic.
An informed Hawaiian oceanographer and ocean policy expert offered the following:
“As the Kaiwi Channel is a sacred fishing ground for native Hawaiians, this (wind leasing in the channel) is never going to happen. Sad to waste so much money on it.”
“Translated as “the bone,” Kaiwi recalls Hawaiians’ reverence for human bones as objects of great spiritual significance and symbols of connection. The word is used to fondly describe such concepts as homelife, family, and growing older. The saying “ho‘i hou i ka iwi kuamo‘o”—which literally translates to “return to the backbone”—expresses the joy of coming back to one’s family or homeland after being away.
During the 19th and 20th centuries, the Kaiwi Coast on O‘ahu’s southeast side provided thriving Native Hawaiian communities that called it home with abundant fishing, farming, ranching, and recreation. Maunalua Bay, which fronts the modern town of Hawai‘i Kai on the coast’s southern end, once housed the 523-acre Kuapā fishpond, the largest fishpond in Hawai‘i and the site of a massive annual migration and regeneration of mullet fish.“
Posted in CCS, climate, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Regulation, tagged BOEM, carbon disposal, CCS regulations, Exxon, Gulf of Mexico, opposition to CCS, Repsol on October 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Despite false starts by Exxon and Repsol (see above summary), no carbon sequestration (disposal) leases may be issued or developed until implementing regulations have been promulgated. In that regard, no news is good news for those who are less than enamored with CO2 disposal in the Gulf of Mexico.
The implementing regulations will be controversial. Most operating companies prioritize GoM production over GoM disposal. Most environmental organizations are strongly opposed to CO2 disposal schemes that sustain fossil fuel production and benefit fossil fuel producers. Taxpayers are leery of subsidizing these projects and absorbing increased costs for energy and consumer goods.
The Administration is, of course, well aware of this opposition and will not be publishing implementing regulations prior to the election. The next Administration, regardless of the election outcome, will no doubt take a hard look at these issues before proposing regulations.
The few oil and gas producers that are rather cynically hoping to cash in on CO2 disposal in the GoM will therefore have to wait, perhaps for a long time.
Posted in accidents, Offshore Wind, Regulation, tagged BSEE, Cherbourg France, GE Vernova, New Bedford Light, Rolldock Sun, turbine blade failure, Vineyard Wind on October 9, 2024| 1 Comment »
Per the New Bedford Light, the turbine blade delivery vessel Rolldock Sun was seen on Friday carrying at least two blades out of New Bedford. It was not headed for the Vineyard Wind site. According to vessel tracking websites, the Rolldock Sun was en route to the Port of Cherbourg, where GE Vernova has a blade manufacturing facility.
The most likely explanation for returning the blades to Cherbourg is that defects were detected or suspected. The blade that failed, reportedly as a result of a manufacturing issue, is probably not the only one that was defective.
The New Bedford Light asked GE Vernova, Vineyard Wind, and the Federal regulator BSEE why the blades were being transported to Cherbourg. They received the following responses (my comments in parentheses):
GE Vernova: “No comment on this matter.” (This is the worst possible response. In the absence of information, people are left to speculate. If there was no problem with the blades, why wouldn’t GE simply provide an explanation? Their non-response simply reinforces suspicions that the blades were defective. If that is the case, why not take credit for procedures that identified the suspect defects, albeit belatedly?
Vineyard Wind: “The weekend has gotten in the way of the information flow,” and they would share information should they hear anything. Another request for information was not answered as of noon Monday. (Not exactly confidence inspiring from the company whose blade failure littered beaches and the offshore environment. They are deservedly being watched, and need to be more transparent and responsive.)
BSEE: A BSEE spokesperson did not answer questions and said by email that the agency has no new information. (Disappointing, but not surprising.)
Posted in Gulf of Mexico, hurricanes, tagged Blind Faith, Chevron, evacuation, Hurricane Milton, shut-in on October 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »
In light of Hurricane Milton’s more southerly and easterly track, Chevron’s Blind Faith floating production unit is the only GoM platform reported to be shut-in at this time. Blind Faith was installed in 2008 in 6480′ of water in the Mississippi Canyon area, and is reportedly producing 65,000 bopd.
Posted in accidents, pipelines, tagged Denmark, Erik Andersson, insurers, Lloyds, Nord Stream, sabotage, Sweden on October 8, 2024| 4 Comments »
Swedish engineer Erik Andersson has personally investigated the September 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. He is perhaps the most informed independent investigator of the incident and the associated legal and political drama.
Andersson provided an updated defense document filed by the pipelines’ insurers (attached) and posted his observations on X. His X comments are consolidated below.
Posted in climate, energy policy, Norway, Offshore Wind, Uncategorized, tagged acquisition, Equinor, Norway, Offshore Wind, Orsted, renewable energy targets on October 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Equinor, which is 2/3 owned by the Norwegian government, has purchased a nearly 10% stake in offshore wind giant Orsted (50.1% Danish govt ownership).
With bp and Shell reducing their wind energy investments, Equinor’s Orsted acquisition is a contrarian move. Equinor is also the only major oil company that is still in the market for new US offshore wind leases.
While the Orsted acquisition does not appear to have been directed by the Norwegian government, the State’s 2/3 ownership of the company no doubt influences renewable energy targets and broader corporate strategy.
The initial market reaction to the Orsted purchase was negative (see chart below). On a day when most oil companies’ share prices rose in response to the jump in oil prices, Equinor shares opened sharply lower.
Posted in accidents, climate, Offshore Wind, UK, tagged Scotland Against Spin, Vineyard Wind, wind turbine incidents on October 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Given the absence of industry and government data on wind turbine incidents, Scotland Against Spin (SAS) has done yeoman’s work in filling the void. SAS gathers information from press reports and official releases. A PDF of the latest SAS update summary is attached. You can view their complete incident compilation (318 pages) here. Kudos to SAS for their diligence.
As good as their work has been, SAS acknowledges that their information is far from complete and may only represent the tip of the wind turbine incident iceberg. Per SAS:
Lars Herbst had previously reported, based on the Wind Power article cited above, that “with an estimated 700,000 blades in operation globally, there are, on average, 3,800 incidents of blade failure each year.” Lars noted that the annual blade failure rate of about 0.5% translates to 1.5% of all operating wind turbines experiencing a blade failure every year, a remarkably high failure frequency.
A sad irony is that one of the five operational Vineyard Wind turbines experienced a very impactful blade failure less than 5 months after the project had begun delivering a limited amount of power and government officials were patting themselves on their backs and declaring victory.
“This marks a turning point in the clean energy transition. After many decades of advocacy, research, policymaking, and finally construction, America’s offshore wind industry has gone from a dream to reality,” said Governor Maura Healey. “Across Massachusetts, in 30,000 homes and businesses, when you turn on the light, you will now be using clean, affordable energy. This will make the air we breathe safer and healthier, save customers money, and bring us one step closer to achieving net-zero emissions.”
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Wind, tagged Ack for Whales, Atlantic Shores project, ESA, litigation, Offshore Wind, RIght Whale, Save LBI on October 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »
As a boy, my grandfather owned a home “down the shore” on Long Beach Island (LBI). From the beach, all we saw were swimmers, surf fishers, porpoises, and an occasional vessel on the horizon. The offshore wind industrialization will change the island dramatically.
Attached is the release announcing Save LBI’s intent to sue. Their issues are summarized below:
The Endangered Species Act issues are similar to those that the Nantucket group ACK for Whales is trying to elevate to the Supreme Court.
Posted in climate, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, UK, tagged A Town Called Bruce, Gulf of Mexico production, UK offshore oil and gas, US 5 year leasing plan on October 3, 2024| Leave a Comment »
See the video embedded below or view it here.
Some of us are long-time observers of North Sea operations. Others like JL Daeschler are pioneers who were involved with North Sea exploration and development from the outset. It’s sad to see what is happening to the UK offshore industry.
And for what purpose? Virtue signaling by politicians? Pandering to the international climate cartel? Shutting down North Sea production will have no measurable effect on our climate.
Now that the entire U.S. Atlantic and Pacific, and nearly all of offshore Alaska, are closed to oil and gas leasing, the goal of some is to shut down the Gulf of Mexico. That intent is clear in the 5 year leasing plan that provides for a maximum of 3 sales, the fewest of any 5 year plan in the history of the US offshore program. This is really a 5 year moratorium, not a 5 year leasing plan.
As noted in the post below, GoM production is 1.8 million bopd. BOEM’s reasonable forecast of >2 million bopd through 2027 will not be achieved because of policy decisions, not resource limitations or technical capabilities.
And shame on those who are attributing Hurricane Helene’s destruction to GHG emissions. This is uninformed opportunism at its worst.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 