Posted on February 18, 2026
The leading U.S. offshore wind energy development conference’s return to New York City in 2026 was more muted in celebrating major project milestones than what was likely envisioned at the first event in 2019, as the sector has coped with the economic realities of launching a new domestic industry and now faces the full force of the Trump administration’s ideology-based vendetta against it.
The estimated 900-person attendance at the Oceantic Network International Partnering Forum was down from a recent past event high of nearly 4,000, with continuing uncertainty over further federal funding and permit curbs and a cloudy outlook for investor support prompting frank discussion on how to proceed into the future.
But the Feb. 9-12 conference also comes on the heels of five federal court decisions that granted restraining orders to halt stop-work edicts by President Donald Trump against five major East Coast offshore wind projects totaling 6 GW with an estimated $28 billion of investment at stake.
Conference leaders, builders, regulators and proponents relished that clean-sweep victory in the courts, and highlighted positive results from pilot offshore wind projects—and the first operating U.S. commercial-scale effort—in generating power to land-based grids.
South Fork Wind, the first utility-scale offshore wind facility in U.S. waters, which began commercial operation in late 2024 off New York, generated power in 90% of the hours and on 362 of the days in 2025, ending the year with a capacity factor of 46.3%. “That is remarkable production from a wind turbine site,” Mikkel Maehlisen, head of U.S. offshore generation for developer-operator Orsted, told attendees.
Turbines at the nation’s first permitted wind project, the 800-MW Vineyard Wind off Massachusetts that has been sending 579 MW of power to the state grid since last year, has generating capacity “as high as 75% … when the grid needed it most,” added Liz Burdock, CEO of Baltimore-based Oceantic Network, the conference sponsor. “Performance will matter more than rhetoric.”
‘Reimagining Is Not Retreat’
But even with no federal participation for the first time and signs of retrenchment for projects earlier in development, state officials, industry executives and other sector participants voiced commitment to advance offshore wind and boost investor, supply chain and workforce confidence.
“We are designing a new model for offshore wind. Reimagining is not retreat,” said Burdock. “Reigniting requires action. Industry must show up with solutions.” She added that stopping projects already operating or under construction “has real consequences.”
Despite the pullback in federal support, private investors have not abandoned the sector. “Clean energy has speed and time to market that hyperscalers need,” Benjamin Bielawski, portfolio manager and senior research analyst at Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co., told a Barron’s webinar Feb. 12. He said clean energy still has major benefit in directly powering data centers. “We know demand is there, it’s a timing issue. We are not building renewables fast enough, and the U.S. could be undersupplied in the next three years.”
Janice Schneider, a partner in law firm Latham & Watkins LLP who represented several developers in their recent wins against the Trump orders, noted the impact of the rulings, saying, “That we’re 6-0 against the government, [including a 2025 ruling in an earlier lawsuit against one project] will make it harder for agencies to issue decisions that have a stranglehold [on offshore wind].”
The strategy rethink comes as administration anti-wind measures are likely to continue. While previously mum on any intent to officially appeal the restraining orders, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a Feb. 11 interview with Bloomberg that the agency “absolutely” will do so, claiming offshore wind turbines are at risk of attack by “autonomous submarines.” Burgum denied that the stop-work order is part of a federal “ideological attack” on offshore wind.
But the administration also had cited turbine interference with radar systems in its stop-work order, despite the fact that other countries have mitigated effects on such systems and that project execs all said the Interior Dept. did not share details of new risks with them.
Concern over sunsetting tax credits in last year’s OBBB budget law could delay or shelve up to 75% of U.S. offshore and onshore wind projects after 2027, years earlier than originally set in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, said a new report by Enverus Intelligence Research. “Without tax credit benefits, the levelized cost of energy for new projects in [some] regions is estimated to nearly double,” the report said.
Even so, investors are out there, speakers noted. “America is blessed by access to capital. How do we make it so it’s stable?” said Christina Baworowsky, senior vice president of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions, a right-leaning nonprofit organization. “We’re working to educate Republicans to understand what these projects do … that they are producing electricity.”
New York Moves the Needle
With New York leading the U.S. in offshore wind power commitment with three projects contracted, Doreen Harris, president of the NY State Energy Research Administration, noted 150 turbines will be generating power as the region expects to see a 25% growth in its energy load.
But the agency announced Feb. 13 it canceled its latest wind solicitation, amounting to about 4 GW that was already delayed from last year as the Trump attacks escalated, with no contracts awarded and bids withdrawn. “Given the current level of uncertainty, it would not be prudent to enter into new long-term … purchase and sale agreements at this time,” NYSERDA said.
Harris noted a new agency Request for Information that seeks to expand its project pipeline to possibly include state co-investment for pre-development efforts. The RFI admits past project development actions “have eroded investor confidence with many developers and supply-chain partners slowing or pausing project development or even causing developers to exit the market.” Comments are due March 10.
Offshore wind has been expected to propel New York’s drive to meet renewable energy targets set in its landmark climate law, enacted in 2019 by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Those include mandates for 9 GW of offshore wind by 2035, as well as 70% renewable energy by 2030. As of 2024, the state was at 23.6% renewable, with its three offshore wind projects totaling about 1.8 GW,
Gov. Kathy Hochul now is weighing possible changes in current climate law mandates during current state budget negotiations.
The state has already launched a $300-million competitive funding effort to help ports retain flexibility for future offshore wind and regulations finalized Feb. 12 to reduce schedule and cost of grid modernization projects, with permitting time cut by up to 50%, officials said.
“We know the market has been tested. We adjusted our approach but didn’t abandon the mission,” Harris said. “Offshore wind is not just about clean energy, it’s about economic competitiveness.”
Acknowledging bumps in adapting some offshore wind procurement and cost processes from Europe, Georges Sassine, NYSERDA senior vice president of large-scale resources, pointed to new state efforts to “pause” its model, “de-risk its project framework, continue building and scale significantly when we can.”
Will Hazelip, president of National Grid Ventures, noted projects were proceeding well until COVID-19-related cost inflation set in. “When things are going well, it’s easy to ignore risk, and offshore wind has a lot of risk. It’s highlighted that some of the frameworks we had in place were not fit to manage all those risks.”
Added Kent Herzog, Burns & McDonnell senior managing director: “We wanted offshore wind, but we also wanted low prices, minimum risk exposure, rapid timelines and one-off procurements that didn’t require long-term coordination,” an unachievable mix “for a first-of-its-kind industrial system,” he added.
Despite the mea culpas, “I am an absolute believer in this market,” said Tim Fischer, global executive director for wind at Denmark-based engineering firm Ramboll, which also has worked extensively on China projects. “Offshore wind is a global industry. We need to find disruptive solutions until the market reopens. What can we do differently in the U.S.?”
Meanwhile, Canada aims to to fill gaps in the U.S. offshore wind power supply, as Nova Scotia signed a supply agreement this month with Massachusetts, particularly from the province’s developing Wind West project. The estimated $60-billion effort is set to produce 5 GW of power by 2033 in its first phase, with bi-national collaboration in market coordination, grid integration and supply chain development.
With up to 60 GW of offshore wind potential in the province, “We can’t take our tides or winds somewhere else,” Nova Scotia Prime Minister Tim Houston told the conference. “We intend to use them responsibly and strategically.” He noted Canada’s established regulatory system, adding that Wind West could have capacity to meet 25% of the nation’s energy needs.
“We’re on the verge of our first call for bids to license the first offshore wind projects in Canada, and we’re advancing Wind West to build the transmission infrastructure to send that clean energy to markets,” Houston said. “Our agreement with Massachusetts signals to developers that markets for their clean energy are solidifying, giving them even more confidence to invest in our new offshore wind industry.”
