CalWEA articles from the "News" category.
Floventis Energy and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians on Nov. 8 signed a community benefits agreement for a floating wind farm that is expected to be operational years before deployment of California's larger-scale wind projects in the Morro Bay and Humboldt federal lease areas.
The California Wind Energy Association (CalWEA) today praised the State Lands Commission for advancing two proposed offshore wind demonstration projects near Vandenberg Air Force Base. “This decision is an important step forward to make floating offshore wind a reality for California,” said Nancy Rader, Executive Director of CalWEA.
Congratulations to CalWEA members Cierco and SBM Offshore for "demonstrating the technical competence, delivery capability and technological innovation" necessary to proceed in The Crown Estate's test and demonstration leasing program for floating offshore wind technologies. Given these companies' engagement in California offshore wind, California stands to benefit from this important experience. (The Crown Estate manages land assets in the United Kingdom.)
In a letter to Biden Administration officials, CalWEA explains why the proposed amendments to the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP), issued in the final days of the Trump Administration, are potentially consistent with President Biden's Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis. The DRECP resulted in completely shutting down wind energy development in vast California federal lands, and a course correction is needed to enable the wind energy development that was envisioned by the plan.
In video meetings with CPUC Commissioners' offices this week, CalWEA teamed up with the Business Network for Offshore Wind and Offshore Wind California to explain the critical linkages between planning for gas-plant retirements, transmission upgrades, and offshore wind grid access in achieving the state's greenhouse gas goals cost-effectively and while prioritizing disadvantaged communities most affected by poor air quality.
