August 31: The most recent update to this tracker adds new state and federal measures, including:

  • Legislation introduced in Congress to amend the Inflation Reduction Act to repeal a requirement that offshore oil and gas lease sales precede the granting of offshore wind leases
  • Legislation in Delaware requiring the State Energy Office participate in offshore wind transmission planning
  • Legislation in California to amend the state’s Coastal Act of 1976 to include offshore wind as a coastal resource

The tracker has also been updated to reflect the agreement reached on Aug. 29 between SouthCoast Wind Energy and the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities to terminate two power purchase agreements for the SouthCoast Wind project, and the sale of an offshore wind lease in the Gulf of Mexico. In addition, the 700-MW Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island received final approval from the Department of the Interior on Aug. 22.

An offshore wind boom is underway in the U.S. as the industry aims to meet the Biden administration’s goal of deploying 30 GW by 2030. Last year the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management held its first-ever auction for offshore wind leases off the West Coast in addition to auctioning six new lease areas in the New York Bight, and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management held its first-ever auction for offshore wind leases off the West Coast. A record total of nine leases went into effect in 2022.

The federal government has also proposed lease sales in the Gulf of Maine and the Gulf of Mexico, where deeper waters will necessitate the use of floating wind platforms instead of fixed-bottom turbine foundations. And Ohio is working to establish an offshore wind farm in Lake Erie that would be the first U.S. freshwater farm in state-controlled waters.

Offshore wind farms are concentrated in the Northeast's shallow waters

Hover over each dot to see the capacity, status and developers of each wind farm under construction on the East Coast and in the Great Lakes.

Offshore wind projects under construction are poised to add unprecedented capacity to the nascent industry

Estimated completion dates for offshore wind farms under construction range from 2023 to 2028. These 16 farms are expected to add 17,949 MW of capacity.

As the industry expands, so do the number of state and federal policy measures aimed at managing offshore wind. These measures include proposals to direct some offshore wind revenue toward studies on the industry’s marine impacts, and ones that would require analysis of offshore wind’s impacts on transmission planning. Use the search field below to find individual states by their postal abbreviation, or type "US" to find activity at the federal level.

States and Congress are considering a bevy of measures

As the sector grows, legislators and regulators are working to address economic, logistical and environmental challenges

Methodology: Wind farms under construction are listed once their developers release specifics on their size and location. The policy table includes significant state and federal developments. It generally does not include project-specific developments like environmental assessments. To suggest updates or alterations, please email [email protected].

Visuals Editor Shaun Lucas and Data + Visuals Director Greg Linch contributed to this story.