America’s offshore wind industry made several significant advances in recent weeks, notably highlighted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issuing two Record of Decisions (RODs) to begin construction:  the Eversource and Ørsted Sunrise Wind offshore wind energy project and Avangrid’s New England Wind offshore wind project (formerly Vineyard Wind South).  The federal government...Read More

With the theme of “Awaken New Depths,” preparations for this year’s World Oceans Day on June 8, 2024 are gearing up with the annual photo competition hosted by the United Nations (U.N.) and judged by a panel of world-renowned experts. “Photography is a powerful medium to convey a feeling or a message. This open and...Read More

Since 2006, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Debris Program has led national and international efforts to research, prevent, and reduce the impacts of marine debris. To accomplish its mission, the Program supports marine debris projects in partnership with state and local agencies, tribes, non-governmental organizations, academia, and industry. It also spearheads national research efforts...Read More

As required by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published a Final Notice of Sale (FNOS) and Record of Decision (ROD) for Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261 in the Federal Register on August 25, 2023. BOEM plans to conduct the lease sale on September...Read More

Effective May 18, 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) will no longer proceed in reverse chronological order for Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil, gas, and sulfur predecessor lessees, owners of operating rights, and grant holders when requiring these entities to perform their accrued decommissioning obligations if the current lessees, owners, or...Read More

Last year, Guice Offshore co-founders Nathan and Billy Guice were among the mentors participating in the inaugural cohort for the new Gulf Blue “Navigators” business incubator designed to assist bluetech startups that already have a pilot program in place and are ready to scale.    The Gulf Blue Navigator Program was established by the University of Southern Mississippi Research Foundation and SeaAhead, which...Read More

A new report released in Dec. 2022 by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) calculates the contributions of often-overlooked portions of the ocean economy, concluding that regional marine research and education, state expenditures related to the ocean, and coastal electricity production in the mid-Atlantic area support 38,000 jobs and $25.5 billion in annual...Read More

Video Above:  The U.S. Department of Energy and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management hosted a webinar in Fall 2022 on their ambitious initiatives to position the U.S. to lead the world on floating offshore wind design, development, manufacturing, and deployment. Download the slides from this webinar.  (Credit:  U.S. Department of Energy)   On Feb....Read More

Some offshore renewable energy regulations (mostly pertaining to offshore wind) dealing with workplace safety and environmental compliance will be transferred from the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), the U.S. Department of Interior announced yesterday, Jan. 17, 2023. A joint notice to lessees outlines the transfer of...Read More

On Monday, Dec. 12, 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the availability of two draft Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) for two new offshore wind projects for public review and comment, thereby advancing the regulatory process for construction to begin.  Known as the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project and the Sunrise...Read More