State Getting $125M from Ørsted for Ocean Wind Project Settlement

On May 28, 2024

The Murphy administration announced that the state and NJBPU have settled their claims against Ørsted arising out of Ørsted’s decision to cease development on the Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 projects. Pursuant to the settlement, the state and Ørsted have agreed to release claims against each other arising out of or related to the Ocean Wind Projects. The state will receive $125 million, which is less than $300 million the state said it was owed by Ørsted last November when it cancelled its projects. The money will be used to support investments in qualified wind energy facilities, investments in offshore wind component manufacturing facilities, and other clean energy programs to achieve the state’s clean energy goals under the Energy Master Plan.

In related news, the Murphy administration and NJBPU announced the acceleration of the state’s offshore wind solicitation schedule, expediting the projected opening of the fifth offshore wind solicitation from Q3 2026 to Q2 2025.

he NJBPU recently announced the opening of the state’s fourth solicitation for 1.2 to 4 gigawatts of offshore wind generation capacity. The application window will remain open until 5:00 p.m. ET on July 10.

The NJBPU also announced that it will pause on moving forward with the Second State Agreement Approach (SAA) for coordinated offshore wind transmission planning with regional grid operator, PJM Interconnection (PJM). The decision to pause follows the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) release of Order 1920 which addresses long term regional transmission planning and PJM’s ongoing interconnection queue reform process, each of which impacts planning and costs. Pausing at this time affords Board staff the opportunity to fully evaluate the implications of the new FERC rule and participate in PJM’s process to ensure the best outcome to meet New Jersey’s transmission needs at the least cost to ratepayers.

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