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The recent approval by the federal government’s first American project for offshore wind farm, Cape Wind project, and the immeasurable ecological disaster of oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico appear to have given a boost to final implementation program of offshore renewable energy in the United States, including offshore wind program. Thus, according to the Canadian edition of the newspaper business, the Governor of Maine, John Baldacci, has signed a bill that led the States to produce, through offshore wind in the Atlantic 5GW of energy from renewables by 2030, twice its current level of total energy consumption.

The bill requires state officials in Maine to begin the development of renewable marine resources “as soon as possible” and “without compromising the environment.” The Maine Public Utilities Commission will oversee the tendering and selection of project leaders invited to propose pilot wind farms of 25 MW located in deep water. It is also planned by the committee of managing pilot projects in parks and tidal stream or tidal area that can produce up to 5 MW. According to Governor Baldacci, everything has been provided in this Act by the legislature to ensure maximum transparency in the authorization to be given to the establishment of offshore projects. The bill complements a proposal to borrow $11 million that the state of Maine will ask voters to approve in early June 2010 and its purpose: to fund research and development of demonstration sites wind at sea as well as the birth of an industry manufacturing infrastructure in Maine. Baldacci says: “The success will depend on innovative leadership and a unique public-private partnership. For too long we have been dependent on fossil fuels to heat our homes, power our industries and transport goods and people. Together we will take the path of clean, renewable energy and we get out of oil consumption.”

And even if Maine dependent on imported fossil fuels for about 85% of its total energy needs, there is no doubt that the oil slick effect has borne fruit and accelerates decision making. Last year, the State of Maine has selected three sites for sea trials of prototype wind turbines and giant floating blades which were to be built and ultralight material which should benefit from anchoring systems and stabilization unpublished, but nothing had been realized. Today, not only we like to remember that these selected sites are located in the territorial waters of Maine and require no federal license, but it also produces a precise plan of development. A consortium led by Mr Dagher and trained with the AEWC (University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center) has set dates:

- The first pilot wind of 30 meters high will be deployed in 2012 off Monhegan.

- A second wind of 90 meters (actual size) will be deployed two years later.

- Between 2014 and 2016, the team plans to build a Dagher reducing wind park consisting of five windmills that will produce 25 MW offshore and employ 320 people.

- An intermediate phase is to build an initial fleet of 200 turbines producing 1,000 MW and employing 4,500 people by 2020.

- The final phase will involve construction from March to July slices (various capacities) between 2020 and 2030 totaling March to July by GW and work from 7000 to 15000 people.

Estimated cost to date of operation: $20 billion.

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