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The
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management did not set a new date for the
sale. It said the decision to postpone the sale scheduled for
Oct. 15 was based on “insufficient bidder interest at this
time.”
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek wrote to the agency shortly before the
announcement, asking it to terminate the current auction, Oregon
Public Broadcasting reported. Kotek cited growing concerns from
coastal and fishing communities, tribes and others.
Some are concerned that the construction will harm sea life,
marine habitat, culturally important areas and views of the
ocean. The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw
Indians — whose culture is tied to the ocean — sued the federal
government.
In light of the mounting opposition, the number of companies
planning to bid on the leases dwindled.
Five companies were qualified to bid. Mainstream Renewable Power
Inc., one of the five, told Oregon Public Broadcasting this week
that it will not longer participate. Two others told the
Oregonian/OregonLive that they, too, are backing out.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said Friday that it will
continue working with government agencies and tribal
governments, as well as support ongoing processes to engage with
stakeholders, in order to figure out a future opportunity for a
potential lease sale.
There are only a handful of floating offshore arrays across the
globe. California awarded the first-ever leases in the U.S. to
develop commercial-scale floating wind farms in 2022. The
federal government issued the nation’s first floating offshore
wind research lease to the state of Maine in August.
In Oregon, the plans for floating wind involve two areas
covering 305 square miles (790 square kilometers) off the
state's southern coast. The two areas are 32 miles (52
kilometers) off the coast of Coos Bay and 18 miles (29
kilometers) from the small city of Brookings, near the
California state line.
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