The United States federal government has big plans to cancel several crucial offshore wind projects in a number of states. The latest move by the current administration is to file a motion with the Maryland District Courts to cancel the permit for the offshore wind project in Maryland, which has been met by fierce defiance by the site’s operator. The Trump administration has stated on numerous occasions that it believes wind power is not necessary to achieve the lofty energy goals that they have set.
The US government has asked a judge to cancel or vacate the permits for the wind project in Maryland
American energy giant US Wind planned to erect a wind farm in federal waters just off the coast of Maryland that could produce 2GW of power to residents of the region. They received the permit to do so a long time ago, but the Trump administration has stepped in to ask a federal court judge to vacate those permits. The motion was submitted on 12 September to the court and has not gone down well with US Wind.
“US Wind remains committed to building our 1,700 MW offshore wind project, one of the largest new electricity projects in the entire region. After many years of analysis, several federal agencies issued final permits to the project. We intend to vigorously defend those permits in federal court, and we are confident that the court will uphold their validity and prevent any adverse action against them ”
The government submitted the motion in which the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are the defendants and asked the judge to force the organizations to reconsider the permits for the project, and possibly vacate them altogether. The Mayor and City Council of Ocean City brought the case forward to the courts.
More sites are facing a similar challenge to their permits from the federal government
The offshore project in Ocean City, Maryland, is not the only site in the government’s crosshairs. Reports have emerged that the Trump-led Department of the Interior will be seeking to ask courts to vacate the permits for two other sites that aim to make use of wind power. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Department of the Interior plan to submit similar motions to “remand with vacatur” for two projects in Massachusetts.
Avangrid’s New England Wind and Ocean Winds’ SouthCoast Wind offshore wind projects received approval from the government for their Construction and Operations Plans; however, reports state that a motion to remand and vacate SouthCoast Wind’s approval is expected to be submitted by 18 September and by 10 October for New England Wind. The Maryland case has shaken the sector up, but the industry insiders remain defiant.
This American energy resource is a generational opportunity that nearly 70% of Marylanders support. Families can’t afford to pick and choose which types of domestic energy come online to meet rising demand and costs—we need it all. Let’s make sure every community benefits by advancing a shovel-ready project set to power 600,000 Maryland homes with reliable, affordable energy.” – Oceantic Network’s CEO Liz Burdock
Will we see more wind projects having their permits vacated in the future
That would be the ultimate goal for the Trump administration. It is clear for all to see that the current president has a disdain for the wind power sector. Which is a strange stance to take, considering the significant advancements in technology being made in the wind power sector. The renewable energy industries in the United States face an uncertain future under the current administration. With the Maryland case firmly in the public eye, what will be the effect on the sector overall if the permits are vacated?
