Wind turbines towering as high as 750 feet will soon be seen along Virginia’s Eastern Shore.
Poseidon Atlantic LLC . a joint venture between Real NewEnergy, a renewable-energy technology firm based in Rockville, Md., and Ecofys, a subsidiary of the Dutch utility company Eneco. plans to build one of the first testing facilities for offshore wind turbines in Northampton County, Virginia
Construction is to begin by mid- to late-2012. The site, which could employ as many as 25 workers in the coming years, will serve as a test-and-certification facility for both land-based and offshore wind turbines.
Poseidon hopes to attract several wind turbine manufacturers to the facility, which will be able to accommodate eight to 10 turbines. Wind turbines could be erected as early as the beginning of 2013, each one able to produce between one and 10 megawatts of electricity, according to a news release.
The companies likened the future testing facility to a 50-megawatt wind farm, costing as much as $120 million.
The state has high hopes for spurring wind energy development off the coast.
"If this industry takes root and matures, we could create thousands of new jobs in manufacturing, construction, logistics, operations and maintenance activities," Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling said in the news release. "Many of these jobs are skilled positions with very competitive wages and benefits, and they would produce a sustained and long-term economic benefit for Virginia."
The Virginia Department of Mines and Minerals plans to give Poseidon $750,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding to help study the project’s feasibility.
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