Gov. Cooper says state's exclusion from final offshore wind area is 'extremely disappointing'
Governor Roy Cooper says a federal agency’s recent decision on wind energy areas in the Central Atlantic that excluded North Carolina is "extremely disappointing."
The Federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced three final Wind Energy Areas in the Central Atlantic off the coast of Delaware, Virginia, and Maryland on Monday.
"It will not slow North Carolina’s momentum in reaching our offshore wind energy goals as we transition to a clean energy economy," Cooper said in a statement.
The decision comes two years after Cooper signed a law reaffirming North Carolina's commitment to offshore wind power with a development goal of 8 gigawatts by 2040.
Currently, the state has more than 232,496 acres already leased off the coast for offshore wind development.
"North Carolina remains committed to becoming the nation’s leader in offshore wind energy and stands ready to work with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to identify alternative solutions to solve this problem," Cooper said.
Cooper's office says it encouraged BOEM to collaborate with the state and stakeholders as well as the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs as it was completing its assessment of the Central Atlantic Call Area in an effort to meet state and federal clean energy goals.
"Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that BOEM did those things," Cooper's office said.
