Offshore Wind Transmission Planning on the West Coast

Speaker: Travis Douville, Advisor, Energy Systems Integration, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Heavy Lifting at Humboldt Bay - New Marine Terminal to Set the Stage for Floating Offshore Wind on California's North Coast

Speaker: Chris Mikkelsen, Executive Director, Humboldt Bay Harbor District

Prop 4 & Beyond - Investing in Seaport Facilities & Planning a Multi-Port Infrastructure Strategy

With the passage of Proposition 4 - the $10 billion Climate Bond that includes $475 million for port upgrades for offshore wind - plans are advancing for investments in infrastructure at the Port of Long Beach, Humboldt Harbor District, and elsewhere to serve the upcoming offshore wind pipeline. This panel will discuss efforts currently underway, recommendations for port upgrades in the final AB 525 Strategic Plan, port readiness direction from AB 3, and prospects for private investment, short-term financing, and grant funding to develop facilities.

Moderator:
Eli Harland, Supervisor - Offshore Renewable Energy Planning Unit, California Energy Commission

Panelists:

• Rob Holmlund, Director of Development, Humboldt Bay Harbor District
• Jennifer Lim, Ports and Offshore Wind Lead, Moffatt & Nichol
• Suzanne Plezia, Chief Harbor Engineer, Port of Long Beach
• Brian Sabina, CEO, Clean Energy Terminals

Building a Sustainable Offshore Wind Industry in California

As of 2025, what policies, regulation, or legislative changes are needed to increase market certainty and develop a robust offshore wind industry in California? This panel discussion will focus on a broader industry perspective of what is needed to meet California's offshore wind potential - including roadblocks and paths forward to build a sustainable industry and meet the AB 525 planning goals - over the next four years and beyond.

Moderator:
Chris Potter, U.S. West Coast Manager, Ithaca Clean Energy

Panelists:

• Tony Appleton, Offshore Wind Director, Burns & McDonnell
• Ed Manning, Partner, KP Public Affairs
• Rick Umoff, California Market Lead, Vineyard Offshore

Offshore Wind's Potential as an Engine for California Jobs & Economic Growth

Speaker: Chris Hannan, President, State Building and Construction Trades Council of California

California Jobs and Workforce Development for Offshore Wind

Construction and maintenance of offshore wind and related facilities represents a substantial opportunity to deliver economic benefits to West Coast communities. It also requires a highly skilled workforce. This panel will provide updates on progress on traditional building and construction trades skills transferable to offshore wind, the role of existing workforce training, and strategies that support successful project deployment while creating good-paying jobs in local communities.

Moderator:
Dan Jacobson, Senior Advisor, Environment California

Panelists:

• Travis Alexander, Senior Field Representative, Nor Cal Carpenters Union
• Jeff Hunerlach, District Representative/Offshore Wind Consultant, Operating Engineers Local #3
• Micah Mitrosky, International Representative, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)
• Treston Shull, International Representative, Laborers International Union of North America (LiUNA)
• Abrah Steward, Program Manager, CFROG

Developing a Scalable West Coast Supply Chain & Advancing Technology to Deploy California's First Offshore Wind Projects

The growth in global demand for floating offshore wind presents California with a unique opportunity to build the full-value chain from the ground up and leverage best practices from other markets to advance the clean energy transition. In order to advance this new industry, the state faces several challenges, including a limited supply chain and a lack of ports, transmission infrastructure, vessels, and workforce. Furthermore, the deepwater environment for Pacific offshore wind presents technological challenges and opportunities for innovation. This panel will explore the essential components for developing a scalable, financially durable supply chain and identifying advancements in offshore wind technology that are needed to develop a sustainable industry and enable on-time construction and reliable project operations in California and beyond.

Moderator:
Nancy Kirshner-Rodriguez, Senior Director for Policy & Outreach, Oceantic Network

Panelists:

• Elizabeth Barminski, Offshore Wind Specialist, California Energy Commission
• Rohimah Moly, Deputy Director, Energy and Climate Unit, Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz)
• Seth Price, Vice President of Technology, Principle Power

Local Power: Local Leaders' Role in Shaping Offshore Wind Policies in California

Hundreds of elected officials throughout California embrace Offshore Wind to replace polluting energy sources in their communities with 100% renewable energy, while supporting thriving local economies. Critical offshore wind infrastructure to connect, store and transmit clean energy will depend on permits, studies, and numerous other decisions made by County Supervisors, City Councils, and Port Authorities. Local elected leaders have a crucial role in shaping the industry's success in California, while ensuring that success translates into concrete benefits for the communities they represent.

Through the process of planning and building up this new energy system, it is imperative for workers and communities to be at the table. Working together to create Project Labor Agreements, Community Benefits Agreements, and strong environmental standards is key to achieving the transition from polluting energy to just, renewable and sustainable power.

In this dynamic Round Table, bringing together elected officials from Northern California and the Central Coast with a leading researcher in clean energy and community benefits, attendees will have the opportunity to participate in the discussion as they learn about local power.

Hosted by Elected Officials to Protect America

Moderator:
Meghan Sahli-Wells, California Director, Elected Officials to Protect America

Panelists:

• Hon. Natalie Arroyo, Humboldt County Supervisor, US Coast Guard Reserve Member & CalPoly Humboldt Environmental Conflict Resolution Lecturer
• Katherine Hoff, Climate Change Research Fellow, UC Berkeley Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE)
• Bob Vessely, President, Port San Luis Harbor District

The Role of Offshore Wind in Planning at the CPUC to Meet California's Clean Energy Goals

Speaker: John Reynolds, Commissioner, California Public Utilities Commission

Perspectives on Procurement & Imperatives for Driving Offshore Wind Economies of Scale

Last August, the CPUC set an initial need determination to procure up to 7.6 GW of offshore wind by 2035-2037, per the AB 1373 legislation. Procurement at scale for long lead-time resources like offshore wind is critical to lowering costs for load-serving entities (LSEs) and ratepayers, and to increasing market confidence for developers making the investments. This panel will focus on the role contracting for offshore wind could play in their clean energy plans and the broader benefits of building offshore wind at scale for achieving California's clean-energy goals and helping to meet new electricity demand from vehicles, buildings, and AI and data centers.

Moderator:
Molly Croll, Pacific Offshore Wind Director, American Clean Power

Panelists:

• Michael Colvin, Director, Regulatory and Legislative Affairs, Lead for California Energy Program, Environmental Defense Fund
• Buck Cutting, Project Integration Manager, Sacramento Municipal Utility District
• Leuwam Tesfai, Deputy Executive Director for Energy and Climate Policy, California Public Utilities Commission
• Dawn Weisz, CEO, Marin Clean Energy

Connecting Offshore Wind to California's Grid - Accelerating Transmission Planning & Interconnection

Planning how to connect gigawatts of offshore wind to the grid plays a central role in the race to deploy this new clean-energy resource. CAISO estimates 5-6 GW of transmission capacity may be available on the Central Coast for offshore wind and other energy resources. In contrast, very little transmission infrastructure exists to deliver power from California's North Coast. This panel will discuss CAISO's new 2023-24 Transmission Plan and its $4.6 billion in funding to connect North Coast offshore wind, as well as SB 1006, CPUC and CAISO processes for transmission planning, and key findings from studies by DOE, NREL, PNNL, the Schatz Energy Research Center, and others.

Moderator:
Anna Fero, Associate, Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP

Panelists:

• Travis Douville, Advisor, Energy Systems Integration, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
• Arne Jacobson, Director, Schatz Energy Research Center, Cal Poly Humboldt University
• Susan Lee, Vice President, Aspen Environmental Group
• Marco Rios, Manager, Transmission System Planning, PG&E

International Panel: How Progress on Floating Offshore Wind in the U.K., Europe, and Asia Can Advance Development on the U.S. West Coast

Floating offshore wind is showing great progress in Asian, European and other global markets, with a number of shared characteristics and opportunities for development along the Pacific Rim. This panel will explore new developments in this space, including opportunities and models for collaboration in areas of scientific research, interagency coordination, and California's participation in the Global Offshore Wind Alliance.

Moderator:
Kevin Banister, Partner & CEO, Ocean Connect Energy

Panelists:

• Eunsung Kim, COO and Co-Founder, NEXT Group
• Georgia Roden Lowe, Energy and Climate Policy Advisor, British Consulate-General San Francisco
• Walter van der Weiden, Founder & Director, Westward Consulting

Imagining Floating Offshore Wind in California & America's Clean Energy Future in 2045

Speaker: Kate Gordon, CEO, California Forward (CA FWD)