Posted on September 3, 2025
The Trump administration’s actions – which have cost the wind industry hundreds of millions of dollars – are the focus of a lawsuit scheduled to be heard in federal court on Thursday.
President Donald Trump’s fight against offshore wind has escalated this summer, with more than one dozen agency actions in the last two months alone — the latest of which has stopped a project in its tracks.
The Trump administration has significantly truncated the window to receive multimillion dollar tax credits. It’s issued new Treasury guidance that redefines what it means to start project construction (in order to access those credits). It has imposed 50% tariffs on wind turbine imports. And it has mandated reviews of offshore wind projects by several agencies, including the Justice Department.
Some of the impacts have been quick and clear, illustrated through LinkedIn layoff posts, the return of ships to port (temporarily barred from undertaking the contracted work), project delays, and union laborers protesting the loss of work that they trained for.
Since Trump ordered a freeze on all offshore wind projects permitting on his first day in office, the industry has remained largely silent, deferring to states, lobbyists and organizations to come to its defense. Several of these state allies will return to federal court in Boston on Thursday, where they’ll argue that the permitting freeze is illegal and must be lifted.
“I would say my biggest concern and one that has borne out is this really unfortunate and deep shake to market confidence of the sector writ large,” said Kris Ohleth, director of the Special Initiative for Offshore Wind, on the administration’s treatment of the industry. “From the offshore wind developers down through the supply chain are more and more skeptical with each of these actions that the U.S. is a place for them to do business.”
Bill White, an offshore wind industry veteran, didn’t mince words: The industry is in “dire straits” because of the uncertainty created by the administration.
Review, review, and more review
Many of the secretarial orders and memos direct further review. That’s on top of the significant, yearslong reviews that projects already undergo as part of the permitting process.
All project decisions now need final review and approval by the Secretary of the Interior’s office. The Interior must conduct a review of the impact of wind turbines on migratory birds. The Justice Department must review all pending litigation against wind projects and identify cases where the remanding of permits — or withdrawal of prior approvals — is appropriate. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management must conduct a “full review” of all offshore wind regulations. And the Fish and Wildlife Service must review all permits that allow a level of harm (“take” in regulatory-speak) to birds.
This list doesn’t include the big review that Trump ordered all relevant agencies to carry out on all offshore wind projects in his Jan. 20 presidential memorandum. It’s a review that the federal government has not provided much information or documentation of in court or to the public.
Through this inter-agency review, the Interior Department said it dug up a scientific report on the Empire Wind project in New York state, which is used as a basis to halt construction for one month. But the department entirely blacked out the document in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, E&E News reported.
The Interior also referenced its project-wide review in BOEM’s stop-work order for Revolution Wind. BOEM wrote that it needs time to “address concerns that have arisen during the review that the Department is undertaking pursuant to the President’s Memorandum of January 20, 2025.”
Through secretarial orders, the Interior Department has also directed federal attorneys to review pending lawsuits against projects (13, as of last year) and determine cases in which it would be appropriate to remand permits.
“That’s very concerning,” said Nick Krakoff, attorney with the Conservation Law Foundation. It would be an “unprecedented legal attack on clean energy, and a broader attack on the rule of law in this country.”
On Aug. 29, the federal government followed this order. In a filing for the Town of Nantucket’s lawsuit against SouthCoast Wind, the government said it intends to “move for a voluntary remand” of a key project permit.
SouthCoast Wind, however, was already in limbo. The Jan. 20 memo froze permitting, and the project is in need of three key permits in order to move forward with construction. If Interior moves to remand the construction and operations plan (COP), and it is approved by the court, that will make four permits that the project needs to move forward.
In January, experts said that under-construction projects faced lower risk. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum seemed to provide some assurance during his confirmation hearing, stating projects that are permitted and “make sense” will continue.
But Empire Wind and Revolution Wind have shown that no project is safe.
White, who previously worked with DEME Offshore US, which supports the Vineyard Wind buildout, called the pulling of permits or approvals “unprecedented” for a developed economy. Previously, the granting of permits by the federal government significantly reduced project risk, allowing developers to secure key project financing.
“Seeing all in one place is pretty overwhelming,” said Ohleth of the list The Light compiled. “They all kind of hearken back to the authority that the federal government has uniquely in offshore wind, a resource sited on federal land. It’s an outsized level of control they have.”
“There’s not only such an adversarial environment here in the U.S., but also a welcoming environment in other countries,” she continued. “Why would an offshore wind developer or supply chain member take the risk, time and energy to try and fight back against this political system?”
The New Bedford Ocean Cluster, which connects local businesses with industry, has seen a few prospective companies opt not to become members in recent months, citing a downturn in the market and ongoing challenges created by the administration, said Jennifer Downing, executive director.
The cluster’s annual conference this fall has expanded to address all of its pillars: wind, aquaculture, commercial fishing and marine innovation. Previously, it was solely focused on wind. Downing said it was a natural progression and not related to Trump’s attack on wind.
Also this fall is the American Clean Power Association’s annual wind conference, set in Boston. Relative to prior gatherings, the agenda is significantly abridged and limited.
Economic impacts
These federal actions have cost the offshore wind industry hundreds of millions of dollars.
Empire Wind reported it was losing $50 million per week during the monthlong stop-work order (or about $200 million for the month of April).
The parent company for SouthCoast Wind, Ocean Winds, months ago announced a $260 million reduction in the value of its North American wind portfolio.
SouthCoast Wind has had plans to use the Marine Commerce Terminal (pictured) for its staging operations and another New Bedford facility, The Foss Marine Terminal, for long-term operations and maintenance.
Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, a project south of Virginia, said it incurred an added $73 million in costs from tariffs. If the tariff policies continue through the end of 2026, when the project plans to be finished, the developer expects more than $500 million in added costs, a spokesperson said. As of August, the project is more than 60% complete.
