Trump puts curbs on offshore wind, casting doubt on New York’s clean energy plans

By Colin Kinniburgh | Focus on New York

This story originally appeared in New York Focusa nonprofit news publication that investigates power in New York. Subscribe to their newsletter here.

Donald Trump I wasn’t joking.

He told supporters on the campaign trail that he would stop offshore wind projects on “day one” of his second term. On Monday, the new president published a decree to this effect.

The order suspended new leases, permits and other federal approvals for wind projects and targeted large offshore installations over which the federal government has the most authority. The move could put a major damper on New York state’s climate agenda, since the state — like many of its East Coast peers — relies on the projects to meet its climate goals.

“Without offshore wind, we will not achieve our goals,” said Rob Freudenberg, vice president of energy and environment at the Regional Plan Association.

New York State’s climate law requires the state to have 70% renewable electricity by 2030 and 9 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2035. Today, the state has an offshore wind farm providing 132 megawatts to the grid, or about 1.5% of the 2035 goal. New York plans to build about five large projects off Long Island by early 2030s to achieve its objectives.

Only two of these wind farms are close to planting a turbine offshore.

It remains unclear whether Trump’s order could affect these two projects, Empire Wind I and Sunrise Wind, both of which have federal permits. But his directive appears likely to complicate matters for the next round of projects, for which the state plans to announce contracts by the end of March.

Gov. Kathy Hochul vowed to fight Trump’s actions when she presented her budget Tuesday.

“We must also be prepared to meet the challenge of the Federal Government reneging on its commitments to offshore wind, a key energy source in our transition to renewable energy,” she said.

Hochul told reporters that technology is needed to power growing industries, such as artificial intelligence, and will support a growing number of jobs. “What are you going to do to help your neighbors get the job they were counting on?” » she asked, addressing Long Island native Lee Zeldin, her former gubernatorial candidate and Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.

Officials estimate that the offshore wind industry could create more than 14,000 jobs in New York by 2030.

“It is an economic engine for our region. Why should we take this apart? said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of the Long Island-based Citizens Campaign for the Environment. She highlighted “dock workers, ironworkers, electricians, etc. » who have already worked on the state’s first offshore wind farm. (Its developer, Danish company Orsted, said the project’s land cable work alone created more than 100 union jobs.)

Climate Jobs New York, a labor coalition, said it was “still carefully reviewing” Trump’s order and that wind power was essential to advancing energy independence and supporting working families.

“Across our state, union members are at the forefront of building a thriving national wind industry – creating good-paying jobs, reliable, affordable electricity, cleaner air and water, and boosting local economies,” said Esther Rosario, coalition director. director.

Even after Trump’s order, others in the state’s wind industry are maintaining the wait-and-see posture they adopted in the weeks following the election.

“It is too early in the process to determine what impact, if any, federal actions might have (on) New York meeting its ambitious renewable energy goals,” a spokesperson for NYSERDA, the state energy authority that awards offshore wind contracts.

“We will continue to evaluate all policy developments and work with the Trump administration to provide long-term energy solutions for the growing US economy,” Equinor, the Norwegian company developing Empire Wind, said in a statement.

Trump’s decision could face legal challenges.

“There is a body of case law that has developed in response to attempts by Democratic administrations to withhold permitting of oil and gas projects that could come back to bite the Trump administration here,” said Matthew Eisenson, a senior fellow at the Sabin Center for from Columbia University. Climate Change Law.

The first Trump administration lost more than three-quarters of the lawsuits filed against its regulatory actions, according to the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University. Many of these cases were brought by state attorneys general, including New York.

Asked if the state was considering legal action over the offshore wind order, a spokeswoman for the attorney general, Letitia James, said her office was studying the issue.

If a state like New York were to file a lawsuit, the case could take years to reach the courts. Meanwhile, wind industry executives are trying to decide where and how to spend their money. A single offshore project can cost hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars up front. An uncertain climate could cause companies to pull investments from the East Coast, as some have already done.

“Those who build (offshore wind projects) want to make sure they get a return on their investment, because it’s a big risk they’re taking,” Freudenberg said.

Even before Trump’s order, the industry was struggling to gain a foothold amid the fallout from pandemic-driven inflation and supply chain shocks. Hours before Trump was sworn in, Orsted, the Danish developer, announced losses of $1.7 billion on its U.S. portfolio due to delays to the Sunrise Wind project. It now indicates that the New York project will not be completed before the second half of 2027, that is to say at least six months later than planned.

Some state lawmakers representing Long Island districts welcome a longer pause. Sen. Mario Mattera, a Suffolk County Republican and ranking member of the House Energy Committee, applauded Trump’s executive order.

“While renewable energy is an important part of the future, New York State has rushed to implement offshore wind projects without considering the long-term consequences on our environment, our marine ecosystems and our industries local,” he told New York Focus. “President Trump’s decision provides an opportunity to pause and reevaluate these projects to ensure they are implemented responsibly, with appropriate oversight and input from affected communities. »

Sen. Steven Rhoads, D-Nassau County, urged the Trump administration to undertake a “thorough and expedited assessment” and added that his office “would appreciate additional clarification on the impact of this measure on wind projects currently subject to review.” federal review process.”

Hardline opponents of offshore wind were disappointed that Trump did not go even further, such as taking explicit steps to stop projects with existing permits. On one Facebook group, one member warned that “BigWind has not conceded and will fight back”, accompanied by a meme featuring the Star Wars character Yoda.

“The battle you may have won,” the text reads. “But the war is not over.”