Equinor and Dominion win US Central Atlantic Offshore Wind Auction

The Interior Department announced on Tuesday that Equinor, a Norwegian company, and Dominion, a U.S.-based power company, were the successful bidders at an auction by the U.S. Government for two offshore wind areas near the coasts Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia.

The Biden administration's offshore wind lease auction generated bids of less than $93 millions, placing it as one of the least profitable.

The U.S. president Joe Biden put offshore wind development at the forefront his climate change agenda. However, the industry has struggled in the past year due to rising costs and disruptions in supply chains.

Equinor offered $75 million for a lease of 101,443 acres located 26 miles away from Delaware Bay. Dominion Virginia Electric and Power Co. won a 176.505-acre lease at 35 miles of Chesapeake Bay. The deal was worth $17.65million.

Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management cancelled a planned offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico last month due to lack of interest from industry. In an auction that was held last year, only one of the three leases offered sold for $5.6m. (Reporting and editing by Nicholae Groom)

(source: Reuters)