🔒Offshore wind can deliver benefits for the whole of the commonwealth

Massachusetts will be the home of the first utility-scale offshore wind development in the country with the Vineyard Wind Project, with more projects off our coast in the pipeline. Offshore wind is picking up momentum, and with a partner in the Biden-Harris Administration eager to open new lease areas throughout New England, we are on the precipice of a dramatic expansion of our clean energy generation efforts and the industry that drives them.

The economic impact from these projects has the potential to be transformative. For residents and business owners in Massachusetts, offshore wind will help stabilize our electricity rates, which are among the highest in the nation. The two offshore wind bids selected thus far by the state come with a cost of 6.5 and 5.8 cents per kilowatthour, respectively, some of the most affordable energy available in the Northeast. In addition, offshore wind has the potential to deliver thousands of good-paying jobs throughout the commonwealth as we continue to build out our innovative clean energy industry.

To maximize the opportunities brought by our transition to clean energy, we must make thoughtful, bold investments in our people and communities to ensure we have a workforce ready to both support and receive the benefits from a rapidly growing clean energy economy.

First, in developing the requests for proposals for the next tranches we need to focus on maximizing potential economic development across the state, workforce investment and job creation returns, and investments in minority-owned businesses and diverse communities. The Baker-Polito Administration made modest tweaks to the criteria weight in these areas in their latest RFP last spring, but we need to think bigger in future procurements, especially those with neighboring states, to maximize economic benefits in future projects. Other states are already doing this with highly impactful results. As the price of electricity generated by offshore wind continues to drop, there will be new opportunities to maximize the return on jobs, workforce development, and economic revitalization in coastal communities and gateway cities across Massachusetts. Both Speaker Ronald Mariano and Gov. Charlie Baker have come out for changes to the price criteria in future RFPs, and we agree.

Second, our commonwealth urgently needs to prioritize workforce development, especially in the clean energy sector. Speaker Mariano aided this priority significantly by championing the creation of the Offshore Wind Energy Career Training Trust Fund and capitalizing it in the fiscal 2022 state budget. For years, community colleges and vocational technical high schools have been underfunded and are often searching for new focus areas to meet the needs of students and compete. There is no greater opportunity for new programs and degree tracks than in the clean energy industry. Several state colleges and universities in Southeastern Massachusetts have partnered through their Connect4Wind initiative, which has now expanded to include several more higher educational institutions in the region. Expansion of efforts like this should be a core focus of the new legislation filed by Baker, legislation being developed in the House, future investments by the Legislature in the Offshore Wind Energy Career Training Trust Fund, and other initiatives.

Third, given the incredible opportunity offshore wind and other clean energy technologies present, the commonwealth should replicate the successful components of the 2008 Life Sciences law for the clean energy industry. There is robust competition among states for clean energy projects and climate technology companies. Massachusetts must make every effort to distinguish itself as the place to be for clean energy job creation. We can do that by offering direct funding investments and competitive tax incentives for existing and emerging businesses through the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center as Gov. Baker recently proposed. With billions to spend between the state fiscal 2021 budget surplus and federal American Rescue Plan Act allocation, now is the time and opportunity for a bold investment in this area. Just as the state supported the growth of the life sciences industry with an early investment resulting in more than 100,000 jobs and billions in economic activity, there is potential for similar success stories and returns on investment by aiding the development of the offshore wind and climate technology industries.

Let’s capitalize on the growing momentum for offshore wind and heed the lessons we’ve learned from past investments in new industries, to lay the groundwork for a successful clean energy economy that engages and uplifts the entire state. We must invest further in workforce development and equitable job creation, and direct future offshore wind developer agreements to prioritize these issues. Cities like New Bedford and Salem have ample harbor access and port capacity for significant utilization. Worcester, Brockton, Fitchburg, Pittsfield, Springfield, and other gateway cities have significant manufacturing potential. We have the resources in Massachusetts to support a new industry while creating jobs and addressing climate change. Let’s do it.

Timothy Murray is the president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce and the former lieutenant governor of Massachusetts. Jen Benson is the president of the Alliance for Business Leadership and a former member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.