Posted on June 16, 2025
But his tariff war could add hundreds of millions to the price tag
The largest offshore wind project in the United States is set to be completed on time—a win for an industry that has faced uncertainty under the Trump administration. Construction of Dominion Energy’s 176-turbine project off the coast of Virginia Beach is nearly 60 percent complete, according to the company. When completed, the project is expected to generate enough energy to power roughly 660,000 homes, or 25 percent of Dominion’s residential customers in Virginia.
In January, President Trump signed an executive order that halted new leases for offshore wind in federal waters and directed federal agencies to pause permitting for onshore and offshore wind projects.
The administration went further to stop one project—Empire Wind, a massive wind farm off the coast of Long Island—with a stop-work order in April that sparked concern in the wind industry. The order was lifted on May 19 after New York Governor Kathy Hochul spent weeks negotiating with the administration, allowing the $5 billion project to continue.
Dominion’s largest project in Virginia, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW), is still moving ahead. The facility is on schedule for its target completion date at the end of 2026, said John Larson, director of public policy and economic development at Dominion Energy. Some wind turbines will be installed later this summer and will begin delivering power later this year, he said. Two six-megawatt pilot turbines have been delivering power since October 2020.
Eileen Woll, former offshore energy program director for the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter, which has been involved in moving the project forward since 2013, said the path is clear for Dominion to complete it. When it comes to the political challenges, “there’s only so much we can do about Trump and his pause,” Woll said. But she is hopeful that there won’t be any roadblocks in developing CVOW. “There’s just too much of a support system,” she said.
While construction hasn’t stopped, the Trump administration’s tariffs on the steel industry may drive up the project’s cost. Jeremy Slayton, a spokesperson for Dominion, said the tariffs would add an additional $120 million through the end of the second quarter. If the tariffs stay in effect through the end of the project, they would add an additional $500 million to the cost. For Dominion’s customers, that would mean an additional four cents per month on their utility bills, Slayton said.
Larson said that offshore wind saves customers and the state money in the long run. Unlike fuel, the cost of offshore wind is not impacted by severe weather events. For example, in December 2023, a storm in Virginia caused rolling blackouts in surrounding states and drove up demand for natural gas. On Christmas Eve that year, the price of fuel skyrocketed. If the CVOW project had been completed, Larson said, it would have saved over $10 million in fuel costs in a single day.
The CVOW project has garnered bipartisan support in Virginia, which committed to 100 percent renewable energy by 2050 with the passage of the Clean Economy Act in 2020. The act requires Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power—the largest utilities in the state—to deliver electricity from 100 percent renewable sources by 2045 and 2050, respectively.
Virginia is a regulated utility state, which means major utilities such as Dominion Energy operate as monopolies within their designated service areas. The Virginia State Corporation Commission oversees and approves their rates and services to ensure that consumers receive services at just and reasonable rates.
Even Virginia’s Republican Governor, Glenn Youngkin, recognizes the value and opportunity of offshore wind in the state. He has advanced efforts to strengthen the offshore wind industry, supporting initiatives like the CVOW project and the LS GreenLink wind supply chain manufacturing facility.
Supporters of CVOW say it will bring economic benefits to the region by creating new jobs in construction, manufacturing, and maintenance. This summer, there will be 1,500 people working on the project, Larson said. On average, 900 people will be employed per year over the life of the project. Dominion has been working with local communities, including K-12 schools, community colleges, and higher education institutions to recruit personnel.
The CVOW project has received some pushback from community members concerned about their ocean view and fossil fuel companies, said Grayson Holmes, senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC). Community pushback has been relatively minimal, he added.
Last year, a coalition of conservatives sued the Biden administration, seeking to halt construction of CVOW. The groups, including the Koch-funded Heartland Institute, claimed that federal agencies did not adequately address the ecological impacts of the project and ignored threats to endangered North Atlantic right whales when they approved the project. SELC continues to be hopeful that the federal government will defend the permits.
SELC worked with Dominion to ensure that land and marine animal protections were put in place, Holmes said. Construction of the project can only take place from May to October, when endangered whales are least likely to be in the area. Dominion has trained observers on their boats who track the whales, he said. “They can’t completely eliminate the impacts, but they’re doing what they can.”
In Virginia, the demand for energy has skyrocketed as data centers continue to expand in the state. Virginia is the largest data center market in the world—about 70 percent of the world’s internet traffic runs through Northern Virginia’s “Data Center Alley,” according to the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. Offshore wind could help offset this demand, Holmes said. “Wind is not the only solution, but it’s an important part of the overall spectrum,” he said. “It feels like it should be a win-win for everyone.”
