New Bill Aims to Improve Crucial Offshore Wind Infrastructure
California is a decade away from its 2035 requirement to use 90% clean electricity, and two decades away from needing to reach 100%. It is imperative to such goals that the state scales up production of renewables. Offshore wind is an untapped renewable resource with much potential. With the ability to power millions of homes with abundant, reliable energy at any time of day, going big on offshore wind is a necessity for California. California only ranks 17th in the nation in wind energy growth from 2014-2023. Offshore wind presents a golden opportunity to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels toward clean, renewable energy.
According to Environment California, state Assemblymember Chris Rogers introduced a bill, AB 472, to help develop offshore wind energy infrastructure. If passed, this legislation would require Gov. Gavin Newsom to include a funding assessment in his annual Five Year Infrastructure Plan for building this technology in state ports. Environment California is a cosponsor on AB 472, and we hope that the legislature acts quickly to pass it.
As part of its larger 100% clean electricity plan, the California Energy Commission (CEC) set a goal in 2022 to generate 2-5 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2035 and up to 25 gigawatts by 2045. That would be enough to power more than 25 million homes. But to reach that benchmark, the CEC estimated in its 2024 Offshore Wind Energy Strategic Plan that the state would need to expand to 16 large and 10 small port sites across the state – at an estimated cost of at least $11 billion. Identifying any and all funding opportunities for port infrastructure improvements must be a priority, and AB 472 aims to make that a requirement.
