Environmental groups push for faster offshore wind buildout in Massachusetts
From The Boston Globe
In the wake of a major regulatory decision on offshore wind, environmental groups are imploring the Baker administration to accelerate the state’s nearly 10-year timeline to establish a pioneering clean energy industry in Massachusetts.
One of those groups, the Environmental League of Massachusetts, went so far as to accuse Governor Charlie Baker’s regulators of participating in an “unholy alliance” with utility companies to slow down the construction of offshore wind farms and diminish the state’s ability to lure clean energy companies.
The charge was strongly rebutted by the governor’s office and the utilities, both of which defended the process by which Massachusetts will establish its offshore wind projects — the first competitive solicitation of its kind in the country.
A 2016 energy law, signed by Baker, allowed the state’s three utilities — National Grid, Eversource, and Unitil — to participate in drafting the requests for proposals, or RFPs, for the state’s fledgling offshore wind energy industry. The utilities can then bid on the construction projects from which they will purchase the wind energy.