Posted on February 18, 2025
California is now only a decade away from its 2035 requirement to use 90% clean electricity, and two decades away from needing to reach 100%. To reach these crucial milestones and realize the full environmental and public health benefits of clean energy, we must scale up the production of renewable energy technologies like solar panels, batteries and wind turbines. Offshore wind is one untapped renewable resource with huge potential. With the ability to power millions of homes with abundant, reliable energy at any time of day, going big on offshore wind is a necessity for California. According to our Renewables on the Rise dashboard, California only ranks 17th in the nation in wind energy growth from 2014-2023. Offshore wind presents a golden opportunity to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels toward clean, renewable energy.
Last week, state Assemblymember Chris Rogers introduced a bill, AB 472, to help develop offshore wind energy infrastructure. If passed, this legislation would require Gov. Gavin Newsom to include a funding assessment in his annual Five Year Infrastructure Plan for building this technology in state ports. Environment California is a cosponsor on AB 472, and we hope that the legislature acts quickly to pass it.
Why do we need port infrastructure?
The complex process of offshore wind development is just getting underway in California, and offshore wind turbines are so large that the only place they can be assembled is at ports for ready access to the ocean.
As part of its larger 100% clean electricity plan, the California Energy Commission (CEC) set a goal in 2022 to generate 2-5 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2035 and up to 25 gigawatts by 2045. That would be enough to power more than 25 million homes. But to reach that benchmark, the CEC estimated in its 2024 Offshore Wind Energy Strategic Plan that the state would need to expand to 16 large and 10 small port sites across the state – at an estimated cost of at least $11 billion. Identifying any and all funding opportunities for port infrastructure improvements must be a priority, and AB 472 aims to make that a requirement.
Preemptive planning is key
We don’t have any time to waste when it comes to offshore wind. The longer that fossil fuels power California’s electric grid, the greater the risk to our state’s climate and environment.
AB 472 aims to put funding for offshore wind infrastructure front and center every year. The legislation would update the definition of “infrastructure” in the Governor’s Five Year Infrastructure Plan to include an annual assessment of offshore wind funding needs and opportunities. This proactive approach will give our state leaders the most current information they need on an ongoing basis to determine how to fulfill the state’s energy goals.
In the coming weeks, state legislators will refer the bill to a policy committee in the Assembly for a hearing. We hope that our state’s elected leaders move quickly to require a proactive approach to ensure proper funding and support for offshore wind infrastructure in our ports and off our shores.
