The Port of Long Beach has revealed plans for an ambitious floating offshore wind facility aimed at assisting California in meeting its target of 25 GW of offshore wind power by 2045 and contributing to a 70% reduction in the national cost of this renewable energy by 2035.
Known as Pier Wind, the facility would support the manufacture and assembly of offshore wind turbines standing as tall as the Eiffel Tower and would be the largest of its kind at any US seaport.
The $4.7bn project would span up to 400 acres of newly built land located southwest of the Long Beach International Gateway Bridge within the Harbor District. The construction kickoff is envisioned for January 2027, with the first 100 acres operational in early 2031, the second 100 acres operational in late 2031, and the last 200 acres coming online in 2035.
“As society transitions to clean energy, our harbor is ideally located for such an enterprise – with calm seas behind a federal breakwater, one of the deepest and widest channels in the US, direct access to the open ocean and no air height restrictions. No other location has the space to achieve the economies of scale needed to drive down the cost of energy for these huge turbines,” said Mario Cordero, executive director at Port of Long Beach.
