COROLLA, N.C. (WAVY) — A subsidiary of Dominion Energy is buying a 40,000-acre lease off the coast of Corolla to potentially construct another offshore wind project.
It comes after plans for offshore wind proposed by the current owner of the lease, Avangrid, were put in jeopardy due to concerns about bringing power transmission cables ashore in Sandbridge.
Virginia Electric and Power Company says the lease, currently known as Kitty Hawk North Wind, will be renamed CVOW-South. South, because there’s already the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project currently under construction further north, about 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach.
That $9.8 billion project is the largest offshore wind farm under construction in the United States. Dominion says it will generate enough energy (2.6 gigawatts) to power up to 660,000 homes.
The CVOW-South project meanwhile is expected to have a capacity of 800 MW, enough capacity to serve 200,000 homes and businesses in the 2030s.
Through the deal, Virginia Electric and Power Company is set to pay about $160 million total — $117 million for the lease acquisition (about $3,000 per acre) — and $43 million in associated development cost reimbursement to Avangrid.
“With electric demand in our Virginia territory projected to double in the next 13 years, Dominion Energy is securing access to power generation resources that ensure we continue to provide the reliable, affordable, and increasingly clean energy that powers our customers every day,” said Robert M. Blue, chair, president and chief executive officer of Dominion Energy. “This transaction gives our company another potential option to meet that growing demand in a size and on a timeframe that is consistent with the regulated business mix, credit, and risk profile objectives of the recently concluded business review.”
As for the concerns from residents, it’s unclear if plans still call for running the transmission lines at Sandbridge.
Dominion says it’s “aware of the community concerns regarding the proposed landing site in Sandbridge, Va., and is committed to working closely with the community, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the City of Virginia Beach as it considers this project.”
Dominion says, pending approvals from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the City of Virginia Beach, the deal with Avangrid is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024.