Mack Point Terminal to be assessed for renewable energy industry

Courtesy / Governor’s Office The state will assess Mack Point in Searsport for renewable energy opportunity. At the terminal this week, from left: Rep. Scott Cuddy (D-Winterport); Gov. Janet Mills; Tim Theriault, Sprague Operating Resources’ vice president of materials handling ; Dan Burgess, head of the Governor’s Energy Office; Heather Johnson, commissioner of the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development; Bruce Van Note, commissioner of the Department of Transportation; and Searsport Town Manager James Gillway. Courtesy / Governor’s Office

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By Staff

Mack Port Terminal in Searsport is being considered as a potential site for opportunities to support Maine’s renewable energy industry, specifically offshore wind.

Gov. Janet Mills said this week that her administration will assess both short-term and long-term port opportunities related to the offshore wind industry.

“Offshore wind is poised to become a $1 trillion industry by 2040, creating thousands of good-paying jobs, providing clean renewable energy, and spurring economic growth,” Mills said in the release. “With our existing port infrastructure and proximity to both European and East Coast markets, Maine is well-positioned to become a leader in the offshore wind industry just as Scotland has.”

Searsport has been critical for the delivery and deployment of onshore wind in New England for years, she said.

“My administration will evaluate how the port can do the same for offshore wind,” she continued.

The assessment, called the “Port Infrastructure and Market Potential Assessment,” will be led by the Maine Department of Transportation, Governor’s Energy Office and Department of Economic and Community Development as a part of the Maine Offshore Wind Initiative.

It will utilize the 2017 Searsport Intermodal Commodity Study as a foundation and identify and assess short-term and long-term port opportunities related to the offshore wind industry.

Screenshot courtesy / Maine Port Authority/Maine Department of Transportation

Seen here is an aerial view of the Mack Point cargo facility provided in the 2017 Searsport Intermodal Commodity Study.

At a minimum, the assessment will review site characteristics, provide an analysis of potential port users and identify structural improvements or capital investments that may be needed. Additional analysis and review will also be undertaken to review offshore wind supply chain opportunities such as foundation and turbine assembly as well as the workforce needed to support these activities in Maine.

Aqua Ventus assembly point

In addition, Maine Aqua Ventus, the project slated to be the first floating offshore wind project in the country, is planning for approval to use the port to assemble the hull that will be towed out to the demonstration test site off Monhegan Island.

In June 2019, Mills signed into law LD 994, a resolve sponsored by state Sen. David Woodsome, R-Waterboro, directing the Maine Public Utilities Commission to approve the contract for Aqua Ventus, which was done in late 2019.

The University of Maine has estimated that Aqua Ventus will produce nearly $152 million in total economic output, and more than 553 Maine-based direct jobs during the construction period, including jobs for design and construction. Operations and maintenance of the facility is expected to create an additional direct economic output of approximately $16 million over 20 years.

The announcement follows Mills’ visit to Scotland last week as a member of a U.S. state and federal delegation organized by the United Kingdom government to learn more about offshore wind. It also follows her State of the State address in which she spoke of unleashing Maine’s offshore wind potential.

Prior to the announcement, Mills toured Mack Point Terminal and viewed onshore wind turbine components that have been delivered to the terminal for the Weaver Wind onshore project in Hancock County.

1700s seaport

An active seaport since the 1700s, Searsport is Maine’s second largest deep-water port and is home to an intermodal facility serving coastal and inland areas of Maine.

The Mack Point terminal is able to handle a diverse array of products, including bulk shipments as well as project and containerized cargo. The terminal has space for laydown, bulk piling, warehousing and liquid tank storage as well as a potential for further development on existing property.

Sprague Operating Resources LLC operates Mack Point and owns the liquid bulk pier, while the Maine Port Authority owns the dry bulk pier, which Sprague operates. The Maine Port Authority and MaineDOT recently invested in a new heavy bulk cargo handling equipment at the port. Over the last two years, MaineDOT has made investments in upgrading the connecting rail infrastructure at the port.

“Onshore wind development has provided a great boost to Maine's economy,” Rep. Scott Cuddy, D-Winterport, said in the release. “Hundreds of Maine construction workers have been kept employed by this industry for many years. The oncoming development of offshore wind is an exciting time for Maine and an exciting time for Searsport.”

Searsport Town Manager James Gillway said the town is pleased to see progress in the development of offshore wind out of the port.

Over the last decade, wind investment in Maine has crossed the $2 billion mark, Paul Gaynor, CEO of Longroad Energy Partners, said in the release.

"The port facility in Searsport is playing an integral part in the logistics of bringing in the components to construct the Weaver Wind project, as it has on previous wind power projects we’ve developed in Maine,” Gaynor said.

Longroad Energy, which is based in Boston, is developing the 22-turbine Weaver Wind farm in Eastbrook and Osborn and expects to be operational by this December.

Over the past year, Maine has moved forward renewable energy and offshore wind, including lifting the wind moratorium, passing legislation requiring the Public Utilities Commission to approve the contract for Maine Aqua Ventus and joining with New Hampshire and Massachusetts on the federal Gulf of Maine Renewable Energy Task Force to examine opportunities for offshore wind. The task force, led by the U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, seeks to identify potential opportunities for renewable energy leasing and development sites in federal waters off the coast of Maine.

As a part of the Maine Offshore Wind Initiative, the state will also soon launch an initiative to engage directly with the commercial fishing industry to facilitate communication and solicit input to ensure any potential development considers the fishing industry and other maritime interests.