ROBERT SCHMAD
CONTRIBUTOR
A large ship being built to construct offshore wind farms in a way that complies with a labor union-backed law is behind schedule and over budget, compounding a series of setbacks that have complicated the Biden administration’s efforts to expand domestic wind energy, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Charybdis, a massive boat under construction in south Texas, would be the first vessel legally allowed and able to carry wind turbine components from an American port and then install turbines in the open ocean, the WSJ reported. The ship is about a year behind schedule, which has placed a strain on the offshore wind industry and made it less likely that the United States meets the Biden administration’s goal of producing 30 GW of wind energy by 2030.
In addition to being behind schedule, Charybdis is projected to have a final cost of $625 million, around double what a similar ship would cost elsewhere, according to analysts.
The AFL-CIO, the largest labor union in America, supports the Jones Act, the law that makes Charybdis necessary. The Jones Act requires that American-made and staffed ships carry wind turbine parts to offshore farm sites, according to the WSJ. (RELATED: One Of Biden’s Favorite Green Technologies Is Drowning In Logistical Hurdles)
No existing American ships have the capability to install the wind turbines many energy firms have planned, and foreign vessels that can build them are not allowed to pick up components directly from American ports.
Rather than large foreign ships directly picking up turbine parts from American ports, smaller American boats will shuttle parts from ports to the farm sites where foreign ships then use their cranes to pick up the parts and begin construction.
Turbine blades can be larger than football fields, and turbine towers can stand as much as 600 feet above water.
Ørsted, a Danish wind energy company, contracted Charybdis to construct two wind farms off the coast of New York but has since had to explore alternative options due to the delays, the WSJ reported.
There is an ongoing shortage of construction ships, contributing to wind energy projects being canceled and delayed, according to the WSJ.
Other wind power companies have paid tens of millions of dollars to get out of contracts to sell energy to utility companies after they were unable to complete projects, citing inflation and supply chain difficulties.
Cancellations of wind energy projects have complicated the Biden administration’s clean energy goals. The United States is only on track to meet about half of its 2030 offshore wind energy goal, according to Reuters.
Delays and cancellations will likely drive up the prices Americans end up paying for wind energy, according to the WSJ.
The Biden administration has financially supported the wind industry through tax credits and manufacturing subsidies.
Despite federal support, some experts think taxpayers could be on the hook to bail out failing wind companies.
“No one should doubt the willingness of the Biden administration and congressional Democrats to try to spend billions more debt-funded dollars to bail out their pet offshore wind industry,” David Blackmon, an energy consultant, previously told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The AFL-CIO did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s requests for comment.
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It is a jobs program, not a business, apparently. They also do not much care if the green prayer wheels produce power. They also do not give a flying f if they kill whales or birds.
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My my my, what a surprise.
Hoist by your own petard. Almost exactly.
Is that 30 GW or 30 GWH Biden wants?
A phrase that keeps popping up and each time I see it, it annoys me even more – this whole idea that an elected official (or in this case, an installed puppet) can make up any arbitrary “goal”, no matter how destructive, expensive, unconstitutional or just plain none of their damned business and expect the rest of the planet to abide with it no matter the cost or how much society hates the idea and the means it is imagined to be accomplished.
I have goals too; by what authority does anyone have to demand that everyone else surrenders their own ideas and sacrifice for another man’s folly? Especially when this particular guy is most likely to be dead from dementia long before 2030, and surely, unless he overstays his station and remains as a dictator for life, will not be able to see it through. Is the next regime supposed to surrender their own agenda to abide by this “goal” no matter how evil it is?
What will they do with the ships once all the parts are delivered?
More good news. The CAGW crowd can blame Charybdis if they like but the reason Biden’s energy plan isn’t working out is because it is a piece of crap. Wind, solar and battery are not up to the task of providing affordable, consistent power when we need it. They never will. A combination of fossil fuel and nuclear can easily provide the power we need when we need it at an affordable price. Every dollar pissed away on renewables in the form of subsidies, tax preferences and regulatory forgiveness should be matched building fossil fuel and nuclear. Do that and see which sources actually provide what we want and need. Renewables are a complete waste.
Does Charybdis have a sister ship named Scylla?
The ships needed to transport and assemble these offshore wind farms are made of steel. Steel is made in blast furnaces using coking coal and iron ore. Last year, the US had 19 operational blast furnaces, that dropped to 14 this year. China has over 800 blast furnaces, next year they will have over 900. Wind/solar/battery systems have not, and never will contribute in any meaningful way to steel, concrete, aluminum, glass, or solar silicon manufacture.
This is a sad fraud upon the US, and the world. “Clean”, “Renewable”, “Net Zero”…Not…
the parasite is killing its host.
And, based on junk science, The Entire Earth
They fail to mention that the global foolish rush to build offshore Wind has created a global shortage of boats. The latest estimate is that 200 are needed. The wind targets are uniformly nuts. The boom is creating its own bust. Fine by me.
Jones Act: only US ships can move freight between points within the US. Work around: ship parts to Canada first.
Pay walled unfortunately
Noise, bird deaths: Windfarm ordered to close for first time in France
Campaign groups successfully argued that the turbines were causing harm to birds and residents
https://www.connexionfrance.com/article/French-news/Noise-bird-deaths-Wind-farm-ordered-to-close-for-first-time-in-France
There is a waiver route for the Jones Act..
Before the ship does any damage to our economy, they need to try to set a speed record near the icebergs of Newfoundland. Be sure and limit the number of life rafts.