October 29, 2024 — The U.S. Department of the Interior auctioned off the first offshore wind energy leases in the Gulf of Maine on 29 October, despite continued opposition from New England commercial fishers.
The auction included eight areas on the Outer Continental Shelf off the New England coast that winning bidders could develop for wind energy operations. The government claimed that if the leases are developed to their full capacity, the sites could generate 13 gigawatts of energy – enough to power 4.5 million homes.