POLB’s Pier Wind facility includes massive land reclamation works

The Port of Long Beach has released plans for an ambitious facility conceived to help California and the nation reach renewable energy targets in the coming decades.

The new facility – known as Pier Wind – would support the manufacture and assembly of offshore wind turbines standing as tall as the Eiffel Tower.

According to POLB, the Pier Wind proposal would see land reclaimed through dredging in the port’s outer harbour developed into the largest facility specifically designed to accommodate the assembly of offshore wind turbines in the US.

The proposed facility is designed to be a 400-acre terminal and transportation corridor built within the Outer Harbor with a rock revetment containment dike and dredge material fill.

The creation of land will require the placement of an estimated 9,500,000 cubic yards (CY) of rock, 42,000,000 CY of fill, and 4,700,000 CY of surcharge to an elevation of +38 ft MLLW, said POLB.

Construction could potentially start in January 2027, with the first 100 acres operational in early 2031, the second 100 acres operational in late 2031, and the last 200 acres coming online in 2035.