Trump administration freezes offshore wind projects, undermining affordability, reliability, and permitting certainty
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration yesterday ordered an immediate halt to the construction of five major offshore wind projects spanning New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and New York—Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind—further undermining energy affordability, grid reliability, and confidence in the federal permitting process. Together, these projects would add nearly six gigawatts of clean energy generation to the grid.
“Affordable, reliable power requires permitting certainty and confidence that the United States is a credible place to invest and build major infrastructure projects,” said Nicole Pavia, Director of Clean Energy Infrastructure Deployment at Clean Air Task Force (CATF). “This action arbitrarily targets a specific technology, despite years of federal review, thorough assessments of national security implications, and a recent court ruling rejecting the administration’s earlier attempts to stop offshore wind permitting. By halting projects despite those reviews, Interior is taking a wrecking ball to project certainty that will undermine energy investments now and into the future. This latest federal reversal will raise costs for consumers, weaken confidence in the permitting system, and stall a bipartisan path forward on permitting reform.”
Earlier this year, CATF joined an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit that led to a federal court ruling that the January presidential directive halting offshore wind permitting and leasing, and the agency actions implementing it, was unlawful. CATF will continue to advocate for durable, technology-neutral permitting and leasing processes that support an affordable, reliable, and secure U.S. energy system.
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About Clean Air Task Force
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With more than 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
