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What is Fishermen’s Energy?
Fishermen’s Energy (sometimes referred to as “FERN” in New Jersey and “FERI” in Rhode Island) is a company founded by a core group of East Coast commercial fishermen to respond to the public’s need to develop the ocean for renewable wind energy. Wind is a clean and constantly renewable energy resource, and it is Fishermen’s Energy goal to turn the North Atlantic coastal waters into an unmatched source of clean energy.
Fishermen’s Energy and its core group of respected, well-established, commercial fishing industry founders, have researched offshore wind carefully and have chosen to view offshore wind as an opportunity for us and for our fellow citizens, rather than as a threat to our traditional fishing businesses. In this spirit, Fishermen’s Energy intends to be a proactive agent for change, and brings a unique ability to harvest the sea for energy and fish, side by side, in an environmentally responsible manner and in a manner which utilizes the decades of maritime and seagoing experience of Fishermen’s Energy’s founders and their hundreds of employees. Ownership in Fishermen’s Energy by fishing industry participants is central to the company’s plans and is being encouraged by a groundswell of local support among fishermen and fishing support businesses in many states. The company intends to enable this broad ownership through an investment offering to commercial fishing vessel owners, fishermen, and those dependent on commercial fishing from Maine to the Carolinas to enable the company to develop the ocean’s energy potential in our region - where we fish and where we live.
Fishermen’s Energy has partnered with the most dynamic, experienced professionals in the renewable energy and offshore wind business community. Recognizing that the impacts of offshore energy development will be long-term and cumulative, and that successful development will require depth of maritime and ocean experience and years of local presence, staying power and patience, this core group has concluded that if the ocean environment is to be developed as a source of electricity, local fishermen and fishing industry companies bound for life to the community and to the sea are the best source of talent and resources to accomplish this.
   
 
   
Why are fishermen investing in offshore wind energy?
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Sustainable husbandry of marine resources is the lifetime occupation of East Coast fishermen.
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The fishermen and the fishing companies involved in Fishermen’s Energy own, support, and have decades of experiencing safely operating hundreds of large, deepwater vessels, year-round, in the harsh waters and extreme seasonality of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast ocean environment. Building, operating, and maintaining wind farms offshore is very different than onshore – and the differences all have to do with safely and effectively handling heavy machinery in high winds and rough seas – which Fishermen’s Energy’s founders have been doing for decades.
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Fishermen’s Energy’s founders and partnering fishermen have comprehensive knowledge of sea-bottom conditions, marine and weather conditions, location of fish habitat, and are uniquely positioned to utilize this knowledge to create siting solutions for offshore wind facilities that respect the environment and other uses of the sea. Fishermen owners, whose existing facilities and industries have been the economic mainstays of shore communities for generations, intend for Fishermen’s Energy to transition their businesses into new, dynamic technologies for the benefit of the local public and business community, all while expanding local employment. Offshore wind will impact fishing in the waters where wind farms are developed. Our long term goal is to develop not only the first wind farm, but to monitor and mitigate the impacts of building a new industry in such a manner, that – after construction – the benefits to the public and to the fishing industry outweigh the detriments and resolve the risks.
   
 
   
Where is Fishermen’s Energy active?
Our first project is proposed offshore near Atlantic City, New Jersey. We recently submitted a proposal to build a separate project in Rhode Island. Both were submitted in response to Requests for Proposals from states that recognize the benefits of offshore wind power. Fishermen’s Energy plans to be active in offshore wind from South Carolina to Maine where local conditions support offshore wind development. We plan to partner with local fishermen in the coastal states to assure local input in the development, construction, and operations of the offshore wind farms.
   
 
   
Why Offshore Wind?
The United States can increase its use of wind power over the next two decades to supply twenty percent of the nation’s electricity without any technological breakthroughs, according to a first-of-its-kind report recently issued by the US Department of Energy (DOE). The report entitled, 20% Wind Energy by 2030, forecasts that target can be met with 300,000 megawatts of installed wind power in the United States assuming that electric demand also increases by 39 percent. According to the report, the DOE expects coastal states to harness 50,000 megawatts of offshore wind in shallow water depths of less than 100 feet. The report notes that shallow water offshore wind energy can provide 100 percent of the electricity supply in some coastal states.
In many respects, offshore wind is a “next step” improvement over onshore wind and represent a close-to-optimal use of wind energy: offshore wind speeds tend to be higher than onshore (which means more energy is available), and wind speeds are more consistent both over time and in all three physical dimensions (in particular, the vertical dimension), which means that more efficient, highly optimized turbine and rotor designs can be utilized. In addition, greater potential availability of space for installation means that larger turbines can be used in a given area, which increases efficiency and energy capture. Many offshore wind farms are being proposed and developed today in densely populated Europe, where there is limited space on land and relatively large offshore areas with shallow water (over 30,000 megawatts of projects are planned). The US North Atlantic region has similar conditions and due to the limited ability to transmit electricity land based wind farm in the mid-west – offshore wind is currently deemed to be the most practical solution to the electrical energy needs of the East Coast population corridor.
   
 
   
What are the economics and environmental issues?
Although offshore wind takes time to develop properly (siting and environmental studies, engineering, underwater civil construction and other tasks are time-consuming) and up-front costs are high, the ongoing costs after construction is finished are low and – just as important – the ongoing costs are relatively stable. Current electricity prices are driven up or down with the volatility and upward trend of international fossil fuel prices, whereas most of the costs of offshore wind – once a facility is built -- are fixed. As a domestic source of energy, wind is not directly impacted by foreign relations or regional turmoil and is less prone to the disruptions and political considerations that can lead to price shocks. Offshore wind is a zero-emission technology. When a project is properly implemented, emissions resulting from construction, operation, and maintenance are substantially less than conventional power plants.
   
 
   
How many offshore wind farms have been built in the US?
There are no permitted or built offshore turbines / wind farms in the US. While there has been substantial discussion about offshore wind potential in the US, there are no operational offshore wind projects operating or even under construction anywhere in the US at this time. There are over 20 offshore wind farms in Europe, and Fishermen’s Energy team includes designers, engineers, owners, and operators of almost 2,000 megawatts of European offshore wind energy projects. It is possible that our projects would be the first in the US and thus we plan to implement them thoughtfully and methodically.
   
 
   
What can you tell me about your New Jersey Project?
In April 2006, the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Offshore Wind Energy Panel released a report, which recommended that New Jersey launch a limited and carefully monitored offshore pilot wind turbine test project to gather more data about the technology’s economic costs, environmental impacts, and overall risk / benefits. In October 2007, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities issued a request for proposals to fulfill the Blue Ribbon Panel’s objective. Fishermen’s Energy responded in March 2008, with a two-phase project:
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 Phase I of the project (FERN Blueribbon Wind farm 1) would be located within about 692 acres of state waters approximately three miles off the coast of Atlantic City. Eight 2.5 MW turbines would be oriented in a linear array to produce 20 MW for interconnection with the PJM transmission grid and power sold to rural customers in New Jersey.
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 Phase II is anticipated to be located in about 20,000 acres located within federal waters approximately seven miles off the coast (FERN Blueribbon Wind farm 2). 66 turbines oriented in a staggered grid array would produce about 330 MW. Power would be sold to municipal, commercial, industrial and other customers in New Jersey
This phased approach is consistent with the Blue Ribbon Panel directive for a pilot project and allows time for finalization of the federal MMS regulatory programs (which are currently under rulemaking review) and for continued work towards commercializing offshore wind technologies.
   
 
   
What can you tell me about your Rhode Island Project?
In January 2006, the State of Rhode Island initiated the RIWinds study project to promote the development of wind power in the state. In April 2008, the State issued a fast-track request for proposals (RFP) for offshore wind development that would provide about 1.3 million megawatt-hours per year of renewable wind energy. Consistent with the state’s RFP, Fishermen’s Energy’s plan is to build the first wind farm in the state. Fishermen’s Energy’s Rhode Island Energy Independence 1 project contemplates the installation of 80 wind turbine generators, situated within state waters, about three miles off the southern coast of Block Island. It will be capable of producing up to approximately 400 megawatts and 1.3 million annual megawatt-hours of electricity, which represents about 15% of Rhode Island’s current energy needs. It would also provide an electrical interconnection for Block Island, which currently relies on expensive and polluting diesel generation.
   
 
   
Can you summarize Fishermen’s Energy’s plans:
Fishermen’s Energy’s participation in offshore energy harvesting adheres to our core business model and organizational values, which espouse a new paradigm for Offshore Wind Energy:
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 Smart facility siting with a view towards minimizing impacts to fishermen while maximizing offshore energy production, serviceability, and maritime safety
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 Enabling members of the local and East Coast commercial fishing industry to invest directly in offshore wind development
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 Creating profit for local businesses capable of serving as vendors, both land-based and water-based
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 Contributing to fisheries science and collaboration with local academic institutions and associations
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 Providing direct mitigation payments to fishermen in specific circumstances where impacts are localized, specific and cannot be adequately addressed by other options
   
  How can I help and how can I learn more:
Stay educated on developments in your area. Contact your state energy office or write a letter to the editor of your local paper supporting offshore wind and Fishermen’s Energy’s proposals. Go to our website at www.fishermensenergy.com or contact Rhonda Jackson, our Communications and Outreach Director at 1-609-286-9650.