The Trump administration issued a stop-work order Friday on Ørsted’s Revolution Wind project, a 65-turbine, 704-megawatt array already almost complete off southern New England. The order followed an announcement Thursday that the administration will investigate “national security” issues around offshore wind power projects.
In a letter to Denmark-based Ørsted the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management cited national security as the reason for the agency’s sudden decision to review the project despite previous approvals under the Biden administration.
“Ørsted is evaluating all options to resolve the matter expeditiously,” including court action, the company said in a statement.
Revolution Wind, under construction off Rhode Island, has been vigorously opposed by the commercial fishing industry for its siting near Cox Ledge, an important habitat for cod. In 2023 fishermen’s fierce opposition led to the mass resignation of the Rhode Island Fishermen’s Advisory Board, whose members charged the state Coastal Resource Management Council is too deferential to wind development interests at the expense of habitat and fisheries impacts.
The stoppage comes after Ørsted offered a new $9.4 billion rights issue in its stock after a sharp 30% plunge in value Aug. 11. The order was the newest in a barrage of new actions from the Trump administration to shut down wind and solar projects.
In April Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ordered a work stoppage on Equinor’s 814 MW Empire Wind project – then relented a month later, after a deal with New York State to let the project proceed along with new natural gas transmission lines.
Offshore wind opponents pressured the Trump administration to rescind not just offshore wind permits but federal offshore leases developers have paid for. In recent weeks the administration has taken a harder ideological line that is alarming maritime and energy groups who hoped some offshore wind projects might weather the political storm.
The administration “has taken unlawful action against a fully permitted offshore wind project under active construction—this time one that is nearly 80% complete,” said Liz Burdock, CEO of the Oceantic Network wind advocacy group.
“This dramatic action further erodes investor confidence in the U.S. market across all industries and undermines progress on shared national priorities – shipyard revitalization, steel and port investments, and energy dominance,” said Burdock. “In fact, halting work on Revolution Wind will drive up energy costs for consumers, idle Gulf Coast vessel operators that have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in new or retrofitted vessels, and jeopardize the livelihoods of union workers.”
Offshore wind projects “advance priorities of the administration by restoring American manufacturing, strengthening shipbuilding, modernizing ports, and building the reliable power needed to support data centers and AI innovation,” National Ocea Industries Association president Erik Milito said in a statement Friday.
“Today, the U.S. has only one fully operational large-scale offshore wind project producing power. That is not enough to meet America’s rising energy needs. We need more energy of all types, including oil and gas, wind, and new and emerging technologies. Offshore projects take years of investment before delivering results, and stable, consistent policy is essential to keep that progress moving.”
