Legal challenge launched over US offshore wind project halt

5 September 2025

Two US states and an energy developer are suing the Trump administration after officials ordered an abrupt stop to construction of a major offshore wind farm off the coast of New England.

The states of Rhode Island and Connecticut joined Ørsted, the Danish energy company leading the development, in legal action following a late-August stop-work order issued by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). Federal authorities cited national security concerns but have not provided details of the risks.

Ørsted described the decision in a court filing as “arbitrary and capricious”. The company said it and its partners have already spent about $5bn (£3.9bn) on the project and face a further $1bn in financial penalties if it is not completed, in addition to lost revenue.

The states announced their lawsuit just hours after Ørsted filed its own case. Both challenges are expected to mark the start of a wider legal dispute over several recent orders from President Donald Trump’s administration, which has taken steps against a number of renewable energy schemes.

US media report that the White House is also preparing to revoke permits for another offshore wind project planned in Maryland.

Supporters of offshore wind argue that such projects are a reliable and cost‑effective way to expand electricity generation. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island said wind power was among the fastest and cheapest methods of meeting rising energy demand while helping to reduce prices.

The lawsuits place one of the US’s highest‑profile offshore wind ventures at the centre of an intensifying battle over the future of renewable power in the country.