The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has awarded Jersey Central Power and Light (JCP&L), a construction contract to connect clean energy generated by New Jersey’s offshore wind farms to the power grid.

The BPU selected JCP&L’s plan from among 80 proposals submitted by 13 different transmission developers in the nation’s first coordinated offshore wind transmission bidding process.

The approximately $723 million in investments awarded to JCP&L to build new and upgrade existing transmission infrastructure represents about 70% of the nearly $1.1 billion project.

The cost of the project is expected to be shared by all New Jersey electric customers.

“This is a historic moment for the state of New Jersey, and we are excited to play such an important role in helping the state meet its initial clean energy goal of 7500 megawatts of wind-generated electricity by 2035,” said Jim Fakult, president of New Jersey operations for FirstEnergy

“Bringing this electricity to the grid in a safe, reliable, cost-effective manner is not just a benefit for JCP&L customers, but all residents and businesses in the state.”

Through the project, power from offshore wind farms in central New Jersey will be delivered onshore to a collection point in Monmouth County.

The electricity then will be converted from direct current (DC) to the alternating current (AC) power that flows through the grid and enter JCP&L’s transmission system at the company’s Larrabee, Atlantic and Smithburg substations, all located in Monmouth County.

In addition to construction of new JCP&L transmission infrastructure to support the project, the award also includes additional upgrades to existing transmission equipment by JCP&L and other electric utilities to help support the additional electricity.