Court reviews BOEM halt on Revolution Wind

Revolution Wind, a joint venture between Ørsted and a consortium led by Skyborn Renewables, has filed a request with a federal district court to ask the court to review the stop order that the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) implemented. The current administration signed into law several executive orders that aim to revitalize the energy sector in the US; however, they also signed an executive order aimed at rolling back the regulatory permits that the Biden-led era gave to Revolution Wind.

The attorneys general of Connecticut and Rhode Island requested that the stop order be lifted

The Trump administration’s stop-work order for the 700-MW Revolution Wind project will be reviewed by a federal court, and if the court deems necessary, will be lifted to allow the nearly complete project to continue its final phase of construction. It’s rare for a project as close to completion as the Revolution Wind project is to be forced to halt all operations, but that is the reality we are presented with.

The states made the filing off the back of Revolution Wind’s filing with the federal district court in Washington, D.C., which also sought an injunction. In their complaint filed with the court, the state attorneys pointed out that the project received all the necessary permits and approval from the federal authorities, which the Trump administration has halted.

“In the face of an exhaustive record showing that the Project has been vetted through every layer of the federal and state regulatory process, and despite the States’ and others’ deep reliance interests, the federal government has arbitrarily reversed course and issued a Stop Work Order without explanation.”

The lawsuit filed by the states will be considered by the federal district court in Rhode Island

That court filing argues that the project is “real, fully permitted, and nearly complete”. It states that the project is approximately 80% finished overall, with all offshore foundations installed and around 70% of its turbines ready. They argued that the supportive infrastructure is near completion, with 90% of physical construction at the mainland interconnection site “substantially completed.”

They also point out that one of two offshore wind utility substations has been installed, as well as 84 out of 85 miles of utility export cable. Ørsted announced that it will offer shares at a significant discount, which aims to create $9.4 billion for the company. In a company announcement, the stop work order against Revolution Wind had “further [emphasized] the need to strengthen the company’s capital structure.”

The Trump administration is hard at work rolling back the planned projects for wind power that received approval from the previous administration. They have already made progress in that regard in the form of the halting of a massive wind project in Maryland. Ørsted released a statement on its website that addressed the current situation.

Revolution Wind secured all required federal and state permits in 2023, following reviews that began more than nine years ago. Federal reviews and approvals included the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Marine Fisheries Service, and several other agencies. Revolution Wind has spent and committed billions of dollars in reliance upon this fulsome review process.” – statement from Ørsted

The Trump administration is facing an uphill legal battle in the federal courts

One questions why the Trump administration has such disdain for the wind power sector. Some have speculated that it is a direct result of the wind project that spoiled his view at his golf course in Scotland, which he also tried to get the Scottish government to halt. They did not oblige the president. Despite his best efforts, Trump has not been able to stop a massive wind project in Virginia. Whatever the reasoning, the Trump administration will need to provide adequate reasons to the court to get it to halt the progress being made in the wind sector.