New England’s Offshore Wind Solution

An analysis of the winter 2024–2025 season indicates that offshore wind projects could significantly lower the risk of power outages in New England by offsetting high electricity demand during cold spells. A 1,500 MW fleet would have reduced the risk of energy shortfalls by 55%, while a 3,500 MW fleet would have reduced it by 79%. Such a transition to local renewable resources would decrease reliance on volatile imported LNG and lower wholesale electricity prices, potentially saving consumers $400 million.

• During the winter of 2024–2025, New England's power grid faced increased blackout risks due to cold weather, with daily energy demand exceeding the 350,000 megawatt-hour (MWh) 'elevated risk' threshold on 53 out of 90 days (59% of the period). On four of those days, demand surpassed the next critical threshold of 400,000 MWh.
• The deployment of offshore wind capacity would have substantially mitigated these risks during the 2024–2025 winter. A 1,500 MW fleet (comprising the Vineyard Wind and Revolution Wind projects) would have eliminated 55% of the demand-driven risk. A larger 3,500 MW fleet would have reduced the risk of outages by 79%, leaving only 11 days of risk.
• Integrating offshore wind with existing solar and onshore wind would allow New England to shift away from imported liquified natural gas (LNG), which is used to fill energy gaps during cold spells but exposes consumers to global price volatility. In winter 2024–2025, 22 million dekatherms (Dth) of imported LNG were used. A 3,500 MW offshore wind fleet, combined with other local renewables, would have provided an hourly average supply of 2,740 MW, more than double the supply provided by imported LNG.
• Increasing the share of renewable energy in the wholesale market would lower electricity costs for consumers by displacing high-marginal-cost energy. Specifically, a 3,500 MW offshore wind fleet is estimated to have reduced average energy market prices by 11% during the studied period, resulting in $400 million in consumer savings.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2026). New England’s Offshore Wind Solution. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/New%20England%E2%80%99s%20Offshore%20Wind%20Solution_update_0.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. New England’s Offshore Wind Solution. 2026. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/New%20England%E2%80%99s%20Offshore%20Wind%20Solution_update_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=New England’s Offshore Wind Solution |date=February 2026 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/New%20England%E2%80%99s%20Offshore%20Wind%20Solution_update_0.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2026new, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{New England’s Offshore Wind Solution}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2026}, month = feb, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-07/New%20England%E2%80%99s%20Offshore%20Wind%20Solution_update_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }