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Alicia Mahon, PhD
Wind Energy Program Manager
Alicia Mahon, PhD
Wind Energy Program Manager
Biography
Alicia Mahon grew up in a fishing town four blocks from the Atlantic Ocean. The New Jersey native knew early in life she was destined to help the environment.
“I was outside in nature all the time,” said Mahon, who began at PNNL in 2014 as an environmental engineer. “That sparked my interest in wanting to do something about protecting the environment.”
Fast forward several years, and it was Mahon who greeted and briefed Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm during an August 2022 tour of PNNL-Sequim and its marine research facilities.
“I had the opportunity to talk with her about offshore wind and the potential for energy from the ocean,” said Mahon, one of PNNL’s leading experts on wind energy, particularly offshore, ocean-based resources.
“PNNL-Sequim is the only marine sciences laboratory in the Department of Energy complex,” Mahon said. “We are a valuable and unique asset when it comes to developing offshore wind energy systems.”
As an active member of several professional associations, Mahon serves as the editor of the Marine Technology Society Journal and led a special issue of the Journal on offshore renewables. In 2021, her alma mater, Stevens Institute of Technology, selected Mahon as one of the “40 under 40.”
Mahon serves as PNNL’s wind energy program manager, managing the Laboratory’s portfolio of land-based, distributed, and offshore wind projects for the DOE’s Wind Energy Technologies Office. She also serves as team leader of the Offshore Wind and Ocean Dynamics team within the Coastal Sciences Division.
“We, as a nation, have set an ambitious goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030,” Mahon said. “We have eight years left to do it. Today, there are only 42 megawatts of offshore wind installed. There’s a lot of work to be done, and PNNL is leading the way and working with others to make this goal a reality.”
More information
YouTube: Alicia Mahon discusses PNNL’s contributions to wind energy research
Lab-Level Communications Priority Topics
Grid