Biden admin slips through last minute approval for major Massachusetts offshore wind farm

The Biden administration approved its eleventh large-scale offshore wind farm on Friday, a project backed by European energy companies EDP Renewables and ENGIE, as it seeks to prop up the unpopular industry despite voter opposition.

The approval of Ocean Winds' SouthCoast Wind comes a month before Biden's successor, President-elect Donald Trump, takes office. Trump pledged to stop the controversial offshore wind industry's progress during his campaign for the presidency, citing environmental, efficiency and economic concerns.

Ocean Winds is a joint venture between Portugal's EDPR and France's ENGIE.

"When we walked in the door of this administration, there were zero approved, commercial-scale offshore wind projects in federal waters," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement. "Today, I am proud to celebrate our eleventh approval, a testament to the commitment and enduring progress made by the hardworking public servants at the Department of the Interior."

Despite the ambitious goals set by Biden's administration, the offshore wind industry has been struggling with soaring costs, supply chain challenges and a construction accident at the nation's first commercial-scale project.

This new approval comes amid concerns that the industry may not hit its targets, which could leave a gap in the heavily-subsidized renewable energy program.

SouthCoast Wind is expected to generate up to 2.4 gigawatts of offshore wind energy, enough to power more than 840,000 homes. The project area covers about 127,388 acres and is located about 20 nautical miles south of the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts.

If it goes ahead according to plan, the project will have 141 turbines and up to five offshore substation platforms. It aims to start construction next year and deliver power to New England by the end of this decade.

(Reporting by Nichola Groom; Editing by Aurora Ellis)