The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities voted Wednesday to seek 1,200 to 2,400 MW in its second solicitation for offshore wind, continuing efforts to meet a goal of 7,500 MW by 2035 despite doubts about the resource’s ability to win revenues through PJM’s capacity market.

Responses to the solicitation will be accepted between Sept. 10 and Dec. 10, with an award expected in June 2021.

“This second solicitation not only reinforces our commitment to fighting climate change and achieving 100% clean energy by 2050, but it secures New Jersey’s foothold as a national leader in the growing U.S. offshore wind industry,” Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement.

Under the proposed solicitation schedule, the BPU will consider a third solicitation in 2022 for at least 1,200 MW of OSW and hold additional solicitations every two years until 2028.

The BPU awarded its first OSW contract to Ørsted’s 1,100-MW Ocean Wind project last year. Ocean Wind, which will be built 15 miles from Atlantic City, is expected to begin operations in 2024. (See Orsted Wins Record Offshore Wind Bid in NJ.)

The board on Wednesday also gave final approval to the state’s Offshore Wind Strategic Plan, which provides recommendations to maximize the economic benefits of the projects while protecting the environment and fishing interests. (See NJ Releases Draft Offshore Wind Plan.)

The East Coast’s OSW industry has grown from 30 MW in 2018 to a pipeline of more than 35 GW by 2035, according to the plan.

Commitments by New Jersey and its neighbors, Maryland (1,200 MW) and New York (9,000 MW) account for about half of the East Coast market. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has thus far designated 17 lease areas with potential capacity of more than 21 GW along the coast.

The plan calls for the state to evaluate transmission costs based on several scenarios, including each project using its own radial line and a “backbone” of shared transmission. (See Coastal States Seek Balance on Offshore Wind.)

The BPU and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) on Wednesday also approved two memoranda of understanding authorizing almost $6 million in spending to support OSW and other clean energy projects. New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program, which is run by the BPU, will provide $4.5 million to support NJEDA-led workforce development projects aimed at preparing workers in the state for OSW jobs and $1.25 million to support early-stage, New Jersey-based clean tech companies.

New Jersey officials have said FERC’s December order requiring PJM to apply its minimum offer price rule to all new state-subsidized generation could prevent OSW from earning capacity revenues. In response, the state legislature is considering a bill that would require the BPU to study the implications of withdrawing from PJM and either going it alone or joining NYISO. (See NJ Senate Exploring Exit from PJM.)