Dominion’s planned Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project hits major milestone

By Dave Kovaleski

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published a Notice of Intent (NOI) for the proposed 2.6-gigawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, the largest planned offshore wind farm in the United States.

The NOI signals the start of BOEM’s and other federal agencies’ review of the project and the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). This process will take about two years, followed by a 30-day public comment period.

“The Notice of Intent marks an important regulatory milestone and ensures CVOW remains on schedule to complete construction in 2026, so we can deliver clean, renewable offshore wind energy to Dominion Energy Virginia customers,” Dominion Energy Chair, President and CEO Robert Blue said. “We look forward to continuing to work with our federal regulators and the public as we move forward with the environmental review process.”

Dominion Energy is the owner and developer of the CVOW project. In December 2020, the company filed a Construction and Operations Plan (COP) to build the CVOW commercial project 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. It extends an additional 15 miles East in the Atlantic Ocean. The plan calls for 2,640 megawatts of renewable energy to be installed, which will generate enough energy to power 660,000 homes at peak output.

“Virginia is all in on offshore wind. We are developing the infrastructure, workforce, supply chain, and manufacturing capabilities needed to capture the many benefits of this emerging industry,” Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said. “This announcement puts our Commonwealth on a path to harnessing the power of wind to produce affordable and reliable renewable energy, create thousands of new jobs, and meet our ambitious climate goals. We are grateful for the federal government’s partnership as we work to advance our clean energy future with this large-scale commercial wind project along Virginia’s coast.”

Dominion Energy expects to file for regulatory approval with the Virginia State Corporation Commission later this year. The CVOW commercial project could create approximately 900 jobs and $143 million in economic impact annually during construction and 1,100 jobs and almost $210 million in economic impact annually during operation of the turbines. Further, during construction, the CVOW project is estimated to generate nearly $5 million per year in local and state tax revenue, which jumps to almost $11 million annually once the project is commissioned and operational.

Read the full Daily Energy Insider piece here.