The Trump administration has renewed its campaign against offshore wind, challenging three projects just weeks after signalling it would ease its attacks on renewable energy. The government has sought to revisit approvals for offshore wind farms off the coasts of Rhode Island, Maryland and Massachusetts. The motions, filed in federal court, claim the Biden administration failed to consider their potential impacts on marine life, the fishing industry and coastal scenery, and call on the plans to be sent back to the Department of the Interior.
The moves come despite signals from the administration that it would drop its opposition to renewables projects to get Democrats on board with a long-awaited permitting bill introduced in late September. The Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act would speed up project approvals and prevent future presidents from scuppering infrastructure they are ideologically opposed to.
“It’s hard to see this as anything but negative for the bill,” said John Miller, energy transition policy analyst at TD Cowen. “Democrats were under the impression they had a handshake agreement.”
The justice department asked courts to reconsider approvals for Danish company Ørsted’s Revolution Wind on October 9, US Wind’s Maryland Offshore Wind on October 13 and Avangrid’s New England Wind on October 20.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing