NYPA scrap proposed Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has announced that it is scrapping the proposed Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project due to spiraling costs and the struggling economy.

In a statement released by the state-owned NYPA the 150-megawatt project would have meant an annual subsidy in the region of $60- $100 million.

“It would not be fiscally prudent for the Power Authority to commit to the initiative,” read the statement. However, the NYPA added that it would continue to aid regional groups along the Great Lakes.

The NYPA will also continue to assist both Consolidated Edison, a New York energy company, and the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) in the 350-700 megawatt, Long Island-New York City Offshore Wind Project.

The one major advantage that the Long Island project has over the Great Lakes project is the co-operation and partcipation of multiple utility companies, the NYPA stated. The NYPA also noted how the Long Island project will be ideally situated near the densely populated New York metropolitan area, a part of the country notorious for high energy prices.

The state of New York is aiming, as part of its renewable energy portfolio, to have at least 30 percent of its energy being supplied by renewable resources by the year 2015.

The Great Lakes was technically feasible, the NYPA added, but the cost of the offshore project would have been up to four times that of the same development if constructed on land.