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‘Made in the U.S.A.’ Turbines Complicate U.S. Offshore Wind Plan

  • Big turbines, blades, towers built mostly in Europe -- for now
  • Four states planning $56 billion of projects over next decade
Views Of General Electric Co.'s First U.S. Offshore Wind Farm
Photographer: Eric Thayer/Bloomberg
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With state officials eyeing $56 billion of wind farm projects off the American coastline, developers are worried the turbines will need to be stamped with a big "Made in the U.S.A." That’s because the U.S. doesn’t make any.

Each structure is enormous -- almost half the height of the Empire State Building. Most all of them are constructed in Europe, at least for now. As states in the U.S. Northeast jump into wind power, they’re betting they can create their own windmill industry. It’ll be a costly but perhaps necessary move, especially as President Donald Trump pushes for more factory jobs and picks fights with those making parts abroad.