Gov. Roy Cooper has joined with the governors of Maryland and Virginia to create an interstate partnership to grow the states’ offshore wind energy development.

This partnership will be called the “Southeast and Mid-Atlantic Regional Transformative Partnership for Offshore Wind Energy Resources” — or SMART-POWER for short. This effort will craft standard regulations for the wind projects, develop supply chains for the parts which go into offshore wind facilities, and promote the region as a hub for wind energy. 

“Offshore wind development combined with our strong solar capacity will bring more high paying, clean energy jobs to North Carolina while we continue to ramp up our fight against climate change,” said Cooper. “This bipartisan agreement with neighboring states allows us to leverage our combined economic power and ideas to achieve cost effective success.”

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan commented, “Joining this multi-state partnership to expand offshore wind development will further our strong record of supporting responsible energy projects that provide jobs, clean air benefits, and energy independence.”

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam added, “Harnessing the power of offshore wind is key to meeting the urgency of the climate crisis and achieving 100 percent clean energy by 2050.”

“We applaud Governors Cooper, Northam and Hogan on this important partnership” said Katharine Kollins, President of the Southeastern Wind Coalition. “The offshore wind industry presents an enormous economic opportunity, and it will take collaborative efforts like this to ensure that we maximize the supply chain and clean energy benefits for the mid-Atlantic and southeast regions.”