Saying that for too long the Atlantic states, including Rhode Island, have toiled separately in developing offshore wind energy, Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar gathered the governors of those states Friday in Washington, D.C., and pledged to form a consortium to speed development of wind energy.

The Republican governor is scheduled to address a two-day workshop held in Boston next week by the American Wind Energy Association, a national trade group of wind developers, suppliers, researchers and others. He will be joined by Delaware Gov. Jack Markell and ISO New England President Gordon van Welie.

In the wake of last week's National Grid filing with the state Public Utilities Commission, Deepwater Wind executives are hoping for more time at the bargaining table. Last Thursday National Grid recommended the PUC to turn down a power purchase agreement (PPA) proposed by Deepwater for an eight-turbine wind farm within three miles of Block Island. According to National Grid, Deepwater was asking 30.7 cents per kilowatt-hour for its electricity, when the average cost for wholesale electricity is about 9 cents. It called the proposal "commercially unreasonable."

National Grid is willing to return to the negotiating table with offshore wind farm developer Deepwater Wind, the state's largest utility said in a filing with the R.I. Public Utilities Commission (PUC). The Wednesday filing, actually a copy of a letter sent to Deepwater, came six days after National Grid rejected the developer's renewable energy contract offer, saying that electricity from Deepwater's proposed offshore wind farm would be too expensive.

A storm is gathering over the ocean. Thursday, more than 200 people attended a public hearing in Providence on ocean policy. Almost all who testified praised the interim report of the President Barack Obama's Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force, but their recommendations for regulation of the United States coastline varied widely. ...Perhaps the interim report's most far-reaching recommendation is for an "ecosystem based approach." Martha's Vineyard selectman Warren Doty noted that approach was not in evidence at a recent meeting of the National Marine Fisheries Council.

Rhode Island's congressional delegation met with Governor Carcieri and other officials on Friday for a briefing on the progress of two wind farms being proposed in state coastal waters. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed and Representatives Patrick J. Kennedy and James R. Langevin were at the closed-door meeting at the State House to discuss regulatory issues surrounding the proposals.

With plans moving forward in New Jersey and Delaware - not to mention recent progress in Cape Wind's years-long fight in Massachusetts - it's far from certain that Deepwater and Rhode Island will succeed in their quest to be first. And make no mistake, being first is important. For the developer, it means more than just bragging rights. It gives the company a leg up on its competitors as it tries to develop additional wind farms elsewhere. For the state, it means much-needed economic development and valuable green-collar jobs.

Energy Task Group members this week continued to question language included in recently passed state legislation designed to facilitate an agreement between National Grid and Deepwater Wind. Deepwater is proposing two offshore wind farms - potentially the first in the country - in the waters off Block Island. ...As part of that proposal, an underwater cable would be laid from the smaller farm to the island and another cable laid from the island to the mainland. ...On Monday task group members strongly disagreed with language in the new law that requires island electricity customers to shoulder proportionally more of the cable cost

An amendment to a state renewable energy law is expected to encourage wind and solar power by making it easier for projects to be paid when they produce more electricity than they use. The amendment, signed by Governor Carcieri this month, reduces restrictions on a law enacted last year that for the first time in Rhode Island allowed "net metering." The law was designed to compensate green energy producers for surplus electricity they pump back into the power grid.

Governor Carcieri on Friday signed into law legislation that could pave the way for offshore wind farms in Rhode Island. The bill, passed by both chambers of the General Assembly earlier this month, allows electrical utility National Grid to enter into long-term contracts to purchase "green" energy. For Deepwater Wind, the company proposing more than 100 wind turbines off the Rhode Island coast, the law means having a guaranteed buyer for its energy.

In a victory for Deepwater Wind, the General Assembly passed legislation this week that provides the wind farm developer a guaranteed market for its electricity. And as a bonus for Deepwater, the Legislature approved the bills with veto-proof margins. ...The legislation passed by the House on Tuesday and Senate on Wednesday forces National Grid, the state's largest electric distributor, to purchase electricity from renewable energy projects.

As Rhode Island moves to expand its renewable energy market, lobbyists at the Statehouse are finding the debate provides a different form of green power: cash. At least $400,000 has been spent so far this year by corporations with a stake as lawmakers hash out agreements worth big money to power developers, energy suppliers and labor unions hurting for jobs.

National Grid has appealed to the R.I. Supreme Court a ruling by the R.I. Public Utilities Commission (PUC) ordering Grid to sign long-term contracts for the purchase of renewable energy. The utility argues that current law does not allow it to do what the commission wants. In its ruling on March 16, the PUC unanimously rejected National Grid's electricity supply plans for 2010, writing that "contrary to the plain language" of the commission's rulings on the subject, "the plan did not contain any long-term contracts for renewable energy resources."

The state of Rhode Island signed a joint development agreement with Deepwater Wind Thursday that could lead to the placement of four to eight wind turbines three miles off the southeastern coast of Block Island as early as 2010. The legally binding agreement envisions the wind farm providing 20 megawatts of power with a tie-in to the island.

As the state moves forward with the creation of zoning regulations for Rhode Island's coastal waters, commercial fishermen are worried their interests will not be adequately represented when key decisions are made about where they can fish. ...The fishermen, for their part, say they are supportive of efforts to develop renewable energy and are not looking to derail the SAMP project. "We can absolutely live together," said Wallis. "We just want to have a good say in that."

After 10 months of work, the Committee for Renewable Energy for Barrington (CREB) has recommended the town accept a bid to install a 600 kilowatt wind turbine generator at the Legion Way site. The town council is saddled with the final decision - whether to follow the CREB recommendation and award the bid for the work to Lumus Construction Inc. ...The recommendation report goes into detail, explaining specifics about the proposed project. The council was scheduled to hear from CREB members at Monday night's meeting and were expecting some other vocal residents to attend also.

State Senator Josh Miller is rasing concerns about the wind farm project announced by Governor Carcieri last week. "While the General Assembly has fully supported developing renewable energy projects in Rhode Island, I am concerned that Governor Carcieri has unilaterally moved Deepwater Wind to the front of the line when major questions remain about their experience and background. I am troubled by the lack of disclosure from Deepwater Wind's CEO about his financial relationship with First Wind," stated Senator Miller.

Gov. Donald Carcieri chose Deepwater Wind -- formerly Winergy -- on Thursday to develop a privately financed project that would provide 1.3 million megawatt hours of offshore wind power per year. ...The decision brings to three active plans to build wind farms off the U.S. coast. Besides Bluewater, there's Cape Wind, a private wind farm proposal on Nantucket Sound. New Jersey is nearing the selection of a developer for its own offshore farm. All projects will have to seek federal permits, the rules of which have not been finalized.

The company selected to build a $1.5-billion wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island has never constructed an offshore project. But yesterday, Governor Carcieri said he was confident that Deepwater Wind, the three-year-old New Jersey firm chosen to build the privately financed project, had the experience and the financial backing to get the job done. "They've done projects, not offshore, but they've done projects in Hawaii, Maine and New York so they know how to do wind, they know what's involved," Carcieri said yesterday.