Energy

Offshore Wind Turbine That Dumped Debris Into Atlantic Damaged Again By Lightning Strike

Offshore Wind Turbines (Screen Capture/PBS)

The same Vineyard Wind offshore wind turbine that malfunctioned and polluted the ocean in July 2024 was again damaged by a Feb. 27 lightning strike, according to multiple reports.

The developer of the offshore wind farm is still assessing the damage done by the lightning strike, stating for now that it appears to be confined to the turbine’s blade and that there does not seem to be any debris that fell into the surrounding water, according to the Vineyard Gazette. The same exact turbine had one of its blades snap in July 2024, an incident that led to local outrage on Nantucket Island as large pieces of fiberglass fell into the ocean and washed up on the island’s beaches.

“This was contained to the damaged blade and based on current information there is no impact to the nacelle or turbine structure,” Vineyard Wind said in a statement addressing the lightning strike obtained by the Gazette. “Vineyard Wind deployed both aerial and maritime resources and based on current observations, there is no indication of debris from this event.”

The U.S. Coast Guard is also working alongside Vineyard Wind to determine whether there are any hazards to navigation in the area surrounding the turbine, according to the Gazette. Federal regulators effectively paused development of the Vineyard Wind farm following the July 2024 blade malfunction.

The Biden administration aggressively promoted and subsidized offshore wind in order to meet its goal of having 30 gigawatts of generation capacity installed and operational by 2030, though the offshore wind push faltered as inflation, high interest rates and logistical constraints weighed on developers and forced the cancellation or postponement of major developments. The Inflation Reduction Act — former President Joe Biden’s more than $1 trillion dollar climate bill — contains multiple provisions designed to subsidize offshore wind developers and certain aspects of their supply chains.

President Donald Trump railed against offshore wind routinely on the campaign trail on the grounds that they harm the marine environment without benefiting consumers. He later signed a day-one executive order upon taking office that temporarily suspended offshore wind leasing in federally-controlled waters and kicked off a review of the government’s offshore wind permitting practices.

The U.S. Coast Guard and Vineyard Wind did not respond immediately to requests for comment.