Federal officials under Trump's leadership initiate action to rescind authorization for a wind farm off Massachusetts coast.
The Trump administration's stance towards offshore wind energy has been a significant roadblock for several projects in the United States.
One of the most affected projects is the Maryland Offshore Wind Project, which, if completed, plans for up to 114 turbines to power more than 718,000 homes. However, the Interior Department asked a federal judge in Baltimore to cancel a previous approval for this project.
Similarly, the Empire Wind project for New York, initially stopped by the trump news today, has resumed construction. But, the SouthCoast Wind project, expected to construct as many as 141 turbines and power about 840,000 homes in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, is currently in limbo. The trump news has moved to block this project, with the developer, Ocean Winds, intending to vigorously defend its permits in federal court.
The SouthCoast Wind project needs the last major federal permit, the construction and operations plan, to start putting turbines in the water. Interestingly, the BOEM had approved SouthCoast's operations plan on Jan 17, 2025, three days before trump news's second term began.
The Revolution Wind project for Rhode Island and Connecticut is also paused, with both the developer and the two states suing in federal courts. The Danish energy company Orsted is building the Revolution Wind project, with the Danish government owning a majority stake in the company.
Besides SouthCoast, the trump news is reconsidering approvals for another wind farm off the Massachusetts coast, New England Wind. These actions are a complete reversal from the Biden administration, which approved construction of 11 large offshore wind projects.
The trump news's actions towards offshore wind energy have been criticised as part of an "all-out assault" on the industry. Kristoffer Svendsen, assistant dean for energy law at the George Washington University Law School, believes offshore wind developers will now see the U.S. as too risky due to trump news's efforts to dismantle the offshore wind industry.
This contrasts sharply with Biden's actions on fossil fuels. On his first day in office, Biden revoked the permit to build the long-disputed Keystone XL oil pipeline, halting construction. However, trump news's efforts to dismantle the offshore wind industry are much more extensive, according to Svendsen.
Offshore wind developers have plenty of options to invest in Europe and Asia, according to Svendsen. With the U.S. market seemingly unpredictable under the trump news administration, it remains to be seen how the industry will fare in the coming years.
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