WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge ruled Monday that almost entire offshore wind projects suspended by the administration could be reopened, setting President Donald Trump over continuing efforts to limit fledgling industries.
Working on a nearly completed revolutionary wind project in Rhode Island and Connecticut It has been suspended since August 22nd When the Maritime Energy Management issued a suspension work order on what it said was a national security concern. The Ministry of Home Affairs did not identify these concerns at the time. Both Developer and two states sued In federal court.
Danish energy company Orsted and its joint venture Skyborn Renewborn have sought a preliminary injunction that would allow the project to proceed in the US District Court.
At a hearing Monday, Judge Lois Lambers said how wind relies on federal approvals and that if delays cost $2.3 million a day and projects fail to meet deadlines, the entire company could collapse. From December onwards, the specialized vessels needed to complete the project will not be available until at least 2028. Over 1,000 people work at Wind Farms, with 80% complete.
“There is no doubt in my heart about the irreparable harm to the plaintiff,” Lambers said as he granted the motion for an interim injunction. In his written ruling, he said the winds of revolution “has demonstrated the possibility of success in the merits” of the claim, adding that it is in the public interest to grant the injunction.
Interior Ministry spokeswoman Elizabeth Peace said the Marine Energy Management Agency “means that the winds of revolution can ‘reopen’.
The administration said in a court filing this month that Bohem approved the wind farm but stipulated that developers would work with the Department of Defense to alleviate national security concerns. The Home Office said it had not received information so far that these concerns were being addressed.
Orsted said Monday that construction will resume as soon as possible and will continue to work with the administration.
Nancy Pine of the Sierra Club said the court reaffirmed that “the attacks by Donald Trump and his administration on Clean Energy are not only reckless and harmful to our community, but also illegal.” Trump is trying to “knee” renewable energy “in favor of dirty, expensive fossil fuels,” she said.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said Trump “delegated to restore energy control of our country.
On the campaign trail, Trump vowed to end the offshore wind industry As soon as he returns to the White House. He says that he wants to boost the production of fossil fuels such as oil, natural gas and coal, which emit the greenhouse gases that cause climate change, so that the US has the lowest cost energy and electricity of any country in the world.
His administration has Construction of major offshore wind farms has been stoppedrevoked wind energy permit To pausecancelled plans Large area of federal waters Stopped due to new offshore wind development Federal funding $679 million For a dozen offshore wind projects.
Last week, the administration moved to block a Isolate offshore wind farms in Massachusetts. That came days after the Department of the Interior asked a federal judge in Baltimore to cancel previous approvals to build an offshore wind power project in Maryland.
The Wind of Revolution is considered to be the first large offshore wind farm in Rhode Island and Connecticut, and can power over 350,000 homes. This is about 2.5% of the region’s electricity needs.
Connecticut Attorney General Williamton and Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronya are both Democrats and can call the judge’s ruling a major victory for workers and families, allowing the project to go smoothly and begin to lower the Affordable Energy Bill.
Connecticut Rep. Joe Courtney, a Democrat, said the multi-billion dollar project, which was 80% completed and fully granted on input from the Department of Defense, is not a national security issue. The Home Office should “take tips and get thousands of construction workers to finish their jobs,” he said.
Orsted began construction in 2024 about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of the Rhode Island Coast. The complaint states that about $5 billion has been spent or committed, and if the project is cancelled, it is expected to cost more than $1 billion. Rhode Island already has one offshore wind farm, a 5-turbine block island wind farm.
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McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island. Susan Hay, an AP writer in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.
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