Schatz Energy Research Center
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9/14 webinar: Energy Production and Delivery, and Economic Development — offshore wind feasibility studies

We hope you will join us this afternoon from 2:00-5:00 pm (Pacific) for the first webinar in Exploring the Feasibility of Offshore Wind Energy for the California North Coast. This will be the first of a five-part series in which we hope to build a collaborative discussion about the feasibility of offshore wind energy for the California north coast, and its potential to contribute to California’s clean energy and climate goals.

We welcome participation in these events from a broad audience. Each session is free and open to the public. Closed-caption recordings will also be released following each webinar.

Register now

Today’s speakers

We will open with remarks from:

  • Arne Jacobson, principal investigator on our offshore wind feasibility studies, and Director of the Schatz Center
  • Karen Douglas, Commissioner at the California Energy Commission, and
  • Necy Sumait, Chief of Renewable Energy for the Pacific Region at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Next, Arne Jacobson will share an overview of offshore wind technology, discuss how offshore wind could contribute to California’s clean energy and climate targets, and outline our recent and ongoing feasibility analyses of offshore wind in the Humboldt Bay region.

Mark Severy will then share report findings on:

  • the offshore wind generation capacity on California’s north coast
  • challenges related to the limited capacity of existing local transmission infrastructure
  • the economic viability of wind development
  • and potential economic and employment benefits

Mark was formerly the project manager for these feasibility studies, and is now at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

We will then hear from five panelists with insight into generation and transmission, and to north coast goals for renewable energy and economic development:

  • Matthew Marshall, Executive Director, Redwood Coast Energy Authority
  • Jason Ramos, Tribal Council Vice Chair, Deputy Tribal Administrator, Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe of California
  • Neil Raffan, Regulatory Analyst, Integrated Resource Planning, Energy Division, California Public Utilities Commission
  • Marco Rios, Manager, Transmission System Planning, Pacific Gas & Electric
  • Donna Wright, President/CEO of the Greater Eureka Chamber of Commerce

Panelist comments will be followed by a community discussion, in which participants are invited to ask questions and share their insights on the feasibility of offshore wind for the California north coast.

Funding

Production of this five-part offshore wind webinar series is supported by the Ocean Protection Council of the California Natural Resources Agency. The research studies were funded by the California Ocean Protection Council, the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. 

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