A federal judge on Monday rejected the Trump administration’s latest rationale for blocking an offshore wind project under construction by a Danish company.
According to Bloomberg News, “The Revolution Wind project, intended to power hundreds of thousands of homes in Rhode Island and Connecticut, ‘would be irreparably harmed’ unless work was allowed to continue during the legal fight, US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth in Washington concluded Monday. The project is almost 90% complete.”
Revolution Wind is being developed by Orsted A/S, an energy firm based in Denmark.
The Trump administration initially halted approval for the project last August. At the time, Lamberth granted a preliminary injunction against the order, allowing work to resume as Orsted argued the administration didn’t have authority to cancel pre-existing approval for the project without explanation.
Trump’s Department of the Interior subsequently issued a new order in December that paused the leases for Revolution Wind and four other offshore wind energy projects, “due to national security risks identified by the Department of War in recently completed classified reports” — the off-books name the Trump administration has declared for the Department of Defense — until such time as Pentagon officials assess mitigation for these unspecified risks.
Lamberth’s new order blocks this decision for the time being, as the matter continues to be litigated on the merits. It comes a month after another federal court blocked the Trump administration’s moratorium on new approvals for wind energy projects.
President Donald Trump has despised wind power ever since an array of turbines altered the view at one of his golf properties in Scotland. He frequently rants against wind turbines, which he calls “windmills,” at his rallies and press functions, parroting wildly exaggerated Fox News claims that they pose a threat to birds and marine life.
His attacks on renewable energy have thrown a monkey wrench into bipartisan talks on permitting reform and have put additional pressure on energy prices as the growing buildout of artificial intelligence data centers already strains the power grid.
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