CA Dems Want To Borrow $1 Billion To Rebuild Ports for Offshore Wind as Industry Flails Under High Costs – By Susannah Luthi (Free Beacon) / Feb 9, 2024
California legislators are proposing to take on $1 billion in debt for a seaport overhaul to help offshore wind companies build their turbine factories in federal waters even as the industry is losing subsidies and flailing under high costs.
The Democratic bill, introduced this week, would ask voters to approve $1 billion in bonds “for seaport infrastructure improvements to facilitate offshore wind energy projects off the California coast”—projects that have been green-lit by President Joe Biden as part of his climate agenda.
Industry costs have grown so cumbersome that developers are canceling or delaying their offshore projects in the Northeast, but that hasn’t stopped California. Last year, Democratic governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation authorizing California to buy the industry’s electricity, regardless of its cost, so that the companies will know they’ll have a market after building their expensive turbines and infrastructure. That law will further hike Californians’ electricity bills, according to legislative analysis, although it’s unclear by how much.
