Governors' Wind Energy Coalition

Virginia has approved construction of a wind turbine in the Chesapeake Bay that could be the first installed in U.S. waters, Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) announced yesterday.

Gamesa Corp. Tecnologica SA won approval from Virginia’s Marine Resources Commission to build a 5-megawatt prototype 3 miles from the town of Cape Charles, McDonnell said in a statement, noting that the project may move faster than other wind farms planned for the Atlantic Coast that have been in development for years.

The project also requires approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Gamesa, the second-largest European turbine maker, chose Virginia for the test in part because of the state’s “unique and efficient permitting process adopted for small energy projects,” McDonnell said in the statement (Andrew Herndon, Bloomberg, March 27). — AS