WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Interior Department issued guidelines on Wednesday for leasing offshore areas for renewable energy production.
The department will issue two types of leases for development of renewable resources off U.S. coasts. Long-term leases with a life of about 25 years will cover the construction and energy production of offshore projects.
Limited leases will allow data collection and technology testing over the span of about five years.
With U.S. President Barack Obama pledging to double renewable energy production in three years, the Interior Department has been working to increase clean energy output on public lands.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has said the department is ready to move forward with offshore wind development in the Atlantic Ocean, where wind power can be more easily harnessed.
Under a deal recently worked with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Interior Department has exclusive jurisdiction over offshore wind and solar energy. The Commission oversees offshore projects that generate electricity from wave and tidal projects.
The department is currently considering whether to give final approval to the Cape Wind offshore wind energy project off the coast of Massachusetts, which aims to provide power for 400,000 homes but has drawn powerful opponents including Sen. Ted Kennedy and other residents of coastline communities.
The project would consist of 130 wind turbines over 24 square miles in Nantucket Sound, within view of popular Cape Cod resorts.
(Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; editing by Jim Marshall)
