US pauses five offshore wind projects citing national security risks, drawing criticism and threatening jobs amid Trump’s long-standing opposition to wind energy.
WASHINGTON: The US Interior Department has paused leases for all five offshore wind projects under construction in the country.
It cited unspecified national security risks, casting new doubt over the industry detested by President Donald Trump.
The administration pointed to risks from the Atlantic coast projects outlined in recently completed classified Pentagon reports.
This move comes weeks after a judge ruled Trump’s first-day blanket ban on new offshore permits was illegal.
The department did not specify the risks but noted the Department of Energy had previously identified potential radar interference issues.
The immediate pause would provide time to mitigate the government’s concerns.
Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island criticised the decision as “vindictive harassment.”
The Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island’s coast, developed by Orsted, is 80% complete according to its website.
Whitehouse stated the project had been “thoroughly vetted and fully permitted,” including on national security questions.
Dominion Energy, behind a wind farm off Virginia, said its project involved ten years of work and close military coordination.
The company was ordered to halt work for 90 days, warning it would “lead to energy inflation and threaten thousands of jobs.”
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum bashed the projects as “expensive, unreliable, heavily subsidised offshore wind farms.”
“ONE natural gas pipeline supplies as much energy as these 5 projects COMBINED,” Burgum wrote on X.
Wind energy represents about 10% of US power production, almost entirely from land-based turbines.
Other affected projects include Vineyard Wind off Massachusetts, and the Sunrise and Empire projects near New York.
Trump has long complained windmills ruin views and are expensive, recently urging Britain to stop subsidising “ugly monsters.”
His administration has also moved to block all federal loans for wind energy.
Environmental Defense Fund counsel Ted Kelly said America should not be “kneecapping” its largest renewable power source.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she was working with other states “to review every available option” to restart the projects.
Dominion Energy’s stock closed down around 3.7%, while Orsted’s shares fell 11%.
