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As part of the Biden-Harris administration's goal to deploy 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced on April 27, 2022, that it will publish a Call for Information and Nominations (Call) to assess commercial interest in -- and obtain public input on -- potential wind energy leasing activities in federal waters of the Central Atlantic.
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The Call Area is located offshore the Commonwealth of Virginia and the States of Delaware, Maryland, and North Carolina and comprises areas A-F. These six areas include 496 whole OCS blocks and 298 partial blocks and comprise approximately 3,897,388 acres (1,577,217 hectares). <br></br>
Call Area A: The boundary of Call Area A begins approximately 20 nautical miles (nmi) offshore of Delaware and Maryland and extends eastward to the Sea Scallop Rotational Area and the proposed USCG’s Port Access Route Studies (PARS) fairways. The area at its widest points is about 12 nmi from east to west and about 29 nmi from north to south. Call Area A does not include the Del-Jersey artificial reef and comprises approximately 235,222 acres (95,191 hectares).
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Call Area B: The boundary of Call Area B begins approximately 21 nmi offshore of Maryland and Virginia and extends eastward to the 60-meter bathymetric contour and the proposed PARS fairways. The area at its widest points is about 14 nmi from east to west and about 69 nmi from north to south. Call Area B comprises approximately 652,218 acres (263,943 hectares).
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Call Area C: The boundary of Call Area C begins approximately 35 nmi offshore of Virginia and extends eastward to the 60-meter bathymetric contour. The area is about 21 nmi from east to west and about 10 nmi from north to south. Call Area C comprises approximately 183,907 acres (74,425 hectares).
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Call Area D: The boundary of Call Area D begins approximately 24 nmi offshore of Virginia and North Carolina and extends eastward to the 60-meter bathymetric contour. The area at its widest points is about 28 nmi from east to west and about 40 nmi from north to south. Call Area D comprises approximately 442,553 acres (179,095 hectares).
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Call Area E: The boundary of Call Area E begins approximately 56 nmi offshore of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia and extends eastward to between the 2,500 and 2,600-meter bathymetric contour. The area at its widest points is about 35 nmi from east to west and about 84 nmi from north to south. Call Area E comprises is approximately 1.6 million acres (655,590 hectares).
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Call Area F: The boundary of Call Area F begins approximately 44 nmi offshore of Virginia and North Carolina and extends eastward to between the 2,500 and 2,600-meter bathymetric contour. The area at its widest points is about 20 nmi from east to west and about 66 nmi from north to south. Call Area F comprises approximately 763,491 acres (308,974 hectares).
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How to Comment
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Publication of the call in the Federal Register will initiate a 60-day public comment period ending at 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. Companies interested in submitting their nomination(s) should follow the directions contained in the Federal Register Notice.
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Federal Register, Docket No. BOEM-2022-0023: <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/2022-09036/requests-for-information-commercial-leasing-for-wind-power-development-on-the-central-atlantic-outer"> https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/2022-09036/requests-for-information-commercial-leasing-for-wind-power-development-on-the-central-atlantic-outer</a>"
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Comments close date: 6/28/2022
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