The developers of two wind farms planned off the coast of Ocean City are moving forward with their projects, accepting terms Maryland regulators laid out earlier this month in allowing them to collect subsidies from the state’s electricity customers.
Deepwater Wind and U.S. Wind have both notified the Public Service Commission that they have agreed to invest a collective $115 million in manufacturing facilities and port upgrades around Sparrows Point in southeastern Baltimore County, and to contribute $6 million to a state offshore wind business development fund.
That spending was among the conditions the commission placed on the companies if they wanted to collect millions of dollars in ratepayer subsidies each year.
They are allowed to collect about $179 million a year, on average, through the sale of renewable energy certificates to state utilities and electricity supplers, expected to raise customer bills by 1.4 percent, or $1.40 per month for typical residential customers. Utilities must buy the credits to comply with a state law that will eventually require that one-fourth of Maryland’s electricity supply come from renewable sources.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Scott Dance over at the Baltimore Sun