Ørsted Holding 3 Meetings On Wind Project Affecting Ocean City

OCEAN CITY, NJ — Ørsted will hold three public meetings regarding the Ocean Wind project off the New Jersey coast. The company is building a wind farm 15 miles off the New Jersey coast, which could affect Ocean City in several ways.

Ørsted will hold public meetings online at 1 p.m. Oct. 20, 6 p.m. Oct. 21 and 10 a.m. Oct. 24. Anyone can attend the free sessions by registering in advance at www.OceanWind.com.

“While we always prefer to interact with interested members of the public face-to-face, we understand that is not practical at this time,” said Kris Ohleth, a senior stakeholder relations manager for Ørsted.

Ocean Wind will power more than half a million New Jersey homes. Ørsted expects construction to begin in the early 2020s with the wind farm fully operational by the end of 2024.

Governor Phil Murphy has pledged to supply renewable energy to half the state by 2030 and meet a goal of a 100 percent clean energy economy by 2050.

Ocean City residents have brought up some concerns about project details, including whether the wind turbines will create an eyesore and the potential locations of electric cables.

"We’re still investigating cable routes, but will be providing an overview of our proposals during the virtual open houses," Ørsted spokesperson Gabriel Martinez told Patch. "From the Ocean City boardwalk, the closest turbine will be 15.6 miles away, and during the clearest of days the turbines will be faintly visible."

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