Trump administration halts offshore wind project in Rhode Island
The Trump administration on Friday issued an order stopping all activities of a wind energy project in Rhode Island that could have supplied electricity to 350,000 homes.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in a letter sent to Ørsted, the Danish company operating the project, said the stop work order seeks "to address concerns related to the protection of national security interests of the United States and prevention of interference with reasonable uses of the exclusive economic zone, the high seas, and the territorial seas."
"You may not resume activities until BOEM informs you that BOEM has completed its necessary review," the letter added.
The Revolution Wind Project, a $1.5 billion plan, approved under former President Biden is 80 percent complete and projected to be finished by 2026, according to Ørsted. The company says it’s “fully permitted, having secured all required federal and state permits.”
Friday's order is the latest move by the Trump administration to dismantle wind and solar projects. Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill, which heavily limits incentives for renewable energy enacted in Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.
On top of that, the Interior Department announced last month that it would conduct strict review processes for all wind and solar projects. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s office said this would include decisions on grants, environmental impact and land leases.
This week, the administration also launched a national security probe into imports of wind turbines. Why wind turbine imports are considered a national security problem remains unclear. However, the administration requested comments from the public about the impact of foreign government subsidies, among other topics.
“Ørsted is investing into American energy generation, grid upgrades, port infrastructure, and a supply chain, including U.S. shipbuilding and manufacturing extending to more than 40 states,” the company said in a statement.
“Revolution Wind is already employing hundreds of local union workers supporting both on and offshore construction activities. Ørsted’s US offshore wind projects have totaled approximately 4 million labor union hours to date, 2 million of which are with Revolution Wind,” they continued.
The project was approved in 2023 and had a 20-year power purchase agreement. When fully built, the project could have provided electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes in Rhode Island and Connecticut. In May, the Attorney General of Connecticut, William Tong, and 17 other AGs sued the administration over its attempts to restrict wind projects.
“Ørsted is evaluating the potential financial implications of this development, considering a range of scenarios, including legal proceedings,” the company said on Friday.
The Interior Department did not immediately respond to The Hill's requests for comment.
Ørsted has another wind project in Rhode Island, named South Fork, which was approved in 2021 and also part of the Biden administration's aim to start the clean energy transition.
Revolution Wind is the third project halted by the Trump administration this year. In early August, the Interior Department reversed Biden’s approval for the Lava Ridge Wind Project in Idaho, which could have supplied 500,000 homes with electricity.
“Gargantuan, unreliable, intermittent energy projects hold America back from achieving U.S. Energy Dominance while weighing heavily on the American taxpayer and environment,” Burgum said in the press release early August.
In April, the Interior Department also halted the Empire 1 Wind project off the coast of Long Island, N.Y.