Google Invests in Offshore Wind Farms

Google and New York investment firm Good Energies will heavily invest in the groundwork for offshore wind farms that could remake the East Coast’s electrical map. The project is a $5 billion, 350-mile “underwater spine” that would ease some of the major stumbling blocks in the growth of wind power. The two companies will each have a 37.5 percent share of the equity portion of the backbone, but will probably lure more investors and reduce their stakes. Right now, their share will cost about $200 million each. Environmentalists and government officials cheered the announcement, with an electricity regulator calling the proposal “one of the most interesting transmission projects that I’ve ever seen walk through the door.”