Governors to come together over wind energy

RICHMOND

Gov. Bob McDonnell and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar don't have much in common when it comes to offshore drilling, but wind energy may be another story.

Later this week, McDonnell and other mid-Atlantic governors will go to Washington to discuss how states can proceed in a "coordinated" fashion to access wind energy off the Atlantic coast.

Last summer, federal authorities granted clearance to permit offshore wind projects along the coasts of New Jersey and Delaware. There's also a tower off Massachusetts' coast gathering wind data. And federal officials are reviewing applications for projects off Florida and Georgia.

To speed along the process in Virginia, several lawmakers have filed bills this year to establish a state wind energy authority.

Among them is Sen. Frank Wagner, a Virginia Beach Republican who plans to join McDonnell on Friday at the meeting with Salazar.

Wagner said now is the time to act if Virginia hopes to draw federal renewable energy dollars. He cited a recent analysis by the Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, which found that a wind farm of about 200 tall turbines could produce electricity and generate roughly 1,000 jobs.

The Virginia chapter of the Sierra Club also wants to see action soon, arguing that Virginia is one of 10 Eastern states with enough offshore wind to meet its entire energy demand.

"If we get started right away and choose our sites responsibly, in 10 years we could be producing 20 percent of the state's electricity needs from offshore wind turbines. Our wind resource vastly exceeds the energy potential of all the oil and gas thought to lie off our shores, without the huge risks to the environment and Navy and NASA operations that would accompany offshore drilling," the group said in a statement.

But like offshore drilling, which hasn't been authorized along the Eastern seaboard, wind farms off Virginia's shore aren't that close to becoming reality, some experts said.

Mary Doswell, Dominion Virginia Power's senior vice president for alternative energy solutions, estimated that it could take six to 11 years to establish wind power. The timing depends partly on whether Virginia adopts a mandatory renewable energy standard, she said.

"I can't say if the cost hurdles are too great," she added. "It's a sizable investment, not to mention the transmission costs."

The energy consortium's study set the price tag for a large wind farm at around $1 billion. In the short term, advocates want funding to erect pilot turbines to gauge the power of offshore winds.

Getting money from the state for that purpose could be a tall order at a time when budget dollars are scarce as lawmakers work to plug a $4.2 billion shortfall.

Federal officials also must weigh the potential effects of turbines on the military and aviation. Those hurdles haven't stopped potential investors from trying to move the process forward.

Two unsolicited applications for wind projects south of the Chesapeake Bay and 12 miles offshore have been submitted to the federal Minerals Management Service, according to an agency spokesman.

McDonnell supports offshore wind energy, though drilling seems to be a higher priority.

His administration bristled at a recent report that the proposed 2011 offshore lease sale 50 miles off Virginia's coast would be postponed by a year. Interior Department officials haven't confirmed the reported delay; a spokesman said Salazar will announce a "comprehensive proposal in the coming weeks."

McDonnell said he hopes to get Salazar's ear about offshore drilling at the summit before the secretary makes his announcement.

Pilot writer Scott Harper contributed to this report.

Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com