The U.S. Department of Energy announced that Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation (LEEDCo) has been awarded $40 million in grant funding for the offshore "wind farm" wind turbine project in Lake Erie.
LEEDCo is a non-profit organization working to build an offshore wind power industry in Northeast Ohio for clean energy and good jobs
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Toledo) made the announcement in Cleveland at the Great Lakes Science Center with remarks from Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish, CEO of the Cleveland Foundation Ronn Richard, and President of LEEDCo, Dr. Lorry Wagner.
Icebreaker will now be one of three leading projects that are each eligible for additional funding over three years for the construction phase of the demonstration program, according to LEEDCo's Facebook page.
LEEDCo plans to build six wind turbines that will generate 20 megawatts of power northwest of downtown Cleveland.
According to the Associated Press, the project’s estimated cost is between $120 million and $128 million. The latest grant brings total federal funding for the project to nearly $51 million. The Lake Erie wind farm would be the nation’s first offshore fresh water project. Plans call for the turbines to be operating by 2018.
