Offshore wind projects expected to cost New Jersey residents $1 BILLION a year – as the state approves two massive farms that some say are killing marine life

New Jersey officials have approved two massive offshore wind projects that will produce energy by 2032, but the plans could cost residents $1 billion annually.

The state’s Board of Public Utilities (BPU) sold the parcels to Leading Light Wind and Attentive Energy Two, which together will produce approximately 3,740 megawatts of electricity over the 20-year term of the contracts.

Mike Dean, a Mammoth County resident, told DailyMail.com that these are the most expensive contracts signed by the BPU.

The contractors will be paid a maximum of $131 per megawatt in the first year, compared to previous bids that started at $80 and went up to $100, Dean explained.

The announcement also follows a series of marine deaths along the New Jersey coast, which appeared to see an increase thanks to offshore wind surveys in nearby waters.

“These latest contracts are further proof that the damage and costs of offshore wind industrialization are limitless,” Dean said.

“Taxpayers are being asked to bear the full egregious costs of these projects in exchange for zero environmental benefits.”

“Paving the ocean is not a way to save the planet.”

The BPU chose the two projects because the pair generated enough electricity to power 1.8 million homes in New Jersey and an effort to replace generators that run on fossil fuels.

Leading Light Wind said its project will create 7,500 new jobs in the state and add $3.7 billion in economic development.

Attentive Energy Two said the project would “generate billions of dollars in economic activity” and create more than 15,000 job-years.

BPU officials estimate that the two projects would also reduce carbon emissions by 6.4 million tons annually.

DailyMail.com has contacted Leading Light Wind and Attentive Energy for comment.

New Jersey Congressman Jeff Van Drew commented on the projects in a post shared with X.

“Offshore wind energy harms our supply chain, national defense operations, the environment, the fishing and tourism industries of coastal communities, and will cause energy prices to skyrocket,” he said.

Leading Light Wind is expected to deliver 2,400 MW, while Attentive Energy Two has committed to 1,342 MW.

According to the BPU, the two projects will increase electricity costs by “only” $6.84 per month for a typical residential customer, $58.73 for a typical commercial customer and $513.22 per month for a typical industrial customer, as reported by Save Jersej.

However, prices are based on 2023 dollars and as the US faces high inflation rates, many believe prices will automatically increase, ultimately costing taxpayers more money.

While the cost per customer seems low, Save New Jersey reports that with 3.7 million residents, 538,000 commercial customers and over 11,000 industrial accounts, this amounts to almost $1 billion per year, which will be paid to the two companies for 20 years .

The BPU also noted that the construction of the offshore wind farm will create many jobs; the projects will add 5,128 direct full-time jobs for one year during the first ten years of operation.

These jobs will cost $75 million each year, adding an additional $7.5 billion to electricity bills.

New Jersey has long had plans for offshore wind farms along its coast.

Netherlands-based Orsted would develop the Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 projects off southern New Jersey, which would build 98 turbines 15 miles offshore.

Construction was scheduled to begin this fall and was expected to be operational in 2025, but Orsted announced cancellations for both projects last November.

Orsted cited “macroeconomic factors, including high inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain constraints” that led to the decision.

It is believed that Orsted began blasting the seabed with sonar as early as 2016 – at the same time that an unprecedented number of whales and dolphins began washing up on beaches, according to Senator Mike Testa of New Jersey.

But now residents are once again confronted with more wind turbines to be placed along their beaches.

However, unlike Orsted, which went 15 miles offshore, the two new contractors plan no closer than 40 miles inland.

The distance was an issue for New Jerseyans who said the towering steel turbines would block views of the coast.

Along with the additional increase in electricity bills, residents are concerned about another mass die-off of marine life along their beaches.

Trisha DeVoe, a Toms River resident, conservation biologist and activist for Save our Whales, told DailyMail.com in a previous interview: ‘Over the past ten years, from 2013 to 2022, the average number of humpback whales stranded in New Jersey annually was 2 ,6.

“In the 12 months from December 22 to date, 11 humpback whales have been stranded in New Jersey, more than four times the previous 10-year average.

“We hunted whales to near-extinction, and scientists estimate we are down to about 25 to 33 percent of historic pre-whaling numbers.”

DeVoe has not linked the deaths to wind farming activities, but she and many other Garden State residents are calling for a halt to the projects until independent research can determine what is killing marine life.

Sonar is used to map the seabed for suitable windmill locations, but many believe the loud noise disrupts the movements of animals, sending them into boats or to shore.

In 2022, a group of fourteen beaked whales encountered the Navy’s mid-frequency sonar activity and became stranded.

Two years later, 34 whales became stranded along North Carolina’s Outer Banks while the military conducted offshore sonar training.

However, the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) reported, “As of August 2023, no offshore wind-related construction activities have occurred in the waters off the coast of New Jersey.

“DEP is aware of no credible evidence that offshore wind-related research activities could cause whale mortality.

“Although DEP has no reason to conclude that whale deaths are due to offshore wind energy activities, DEP will continue to monitor.”