Offshore wind energy offers a potential 4,100 gigawatts (GWs) of nameplate capacity in the United States, according to a June 2010 study conducted by the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).1 Despite this tremendous potential, however, the U.S. substantially lags behind other nations and has yet to develop its first commercially operating project. In part, this is a result of a complex and sluggish permitting process, past opposition from environmental advocacy groups and policy makers, a lack of financeable meteorological data in many resource areas, and the overall high costs of offshore installation and maintenance. Recent announcements from the Department of the Interior (DOI) and Department of Energy (DOE) are intended to reduce these barriers to offshore wind energy in the years ahead.