The #Trump admin on Friday ordered that all construction stop on #RevolutionWind, a $4 billion #WindFarm off the coast of #RhodeIsland that is already mostly built.

The 65-turbine project had obtained all necessary permits from the #Biden admin, & nearly 70 % of the turbines have been installed. The developers behind the project had said it was on track to produce enough #electricity for >350,000 homes in Rhode Island & #Connecticut by next spring.

#RenewableEnergy #energy #ClimateCrisis

#Trump appointed Matthew Giacona, the acting director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, issued a letter on Friday to #Orsted, the Danish company building the #WindFarm, ordering it to “halt all ongoing activities” due to unspecified issues.

“In particular, #BOEM is seeking to address concerns related to the protection of national security [?] interests in the United States,” Giacona wrote, adding Orsted “may not resume activities” until the agency has completed a review of the project.

The #Interior Dept declined to comment on the order to stop work on #RevolutionWind.

In a statement, #Orsted said that it was “evaluating all options to resolve the matter expeditiously,” including “potential #legal proceedings.” The company said it still aimed to complete the project by next year.

#Trump #law #RenewableEnergy #energy #wind #climate #ClimateSolutions #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

…The #Trump admin’s move against #RevolutionWind is the latest in a series of its escalating attacks against the #wind industry.

On Thursday, the #Commerce Dept opened a #trade investigation into imported #WindTurbines & their components. The probe could result in further #tariffs on the wind industry that could increase costs for offshore projects that are already underway.

#law #RenewableEnergy #energy #WindFarm #climate #ClimateSolutions #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

2 weeks ago, the #Trump admin said it was reversing a #Biden admin decision to approve the Lava Ridge Wind Project, a giant #WindFarm planned for southern #Idaho. The admin said it had discovered “legal deficiencies” in the original approval but did not provide details.

The #Interior Dept had signaled last month that it would consider revoking federal permits for #wind projects that opponents have sued over, even if those projects were already under construction.

#law #RenewableEnergy #climate

In April, the #Trump admin ordered a halt to work at #EmpireWind, a $5B #WindFarm off the coast of #LongIsland that was already under construction, without publicly providing a justification. After a month of negotiations with #NY Gov #KathyHochul, the admin let Empire Wind move forward, but admin ofcls suggested that they had done so only after Hochul agreed to approve new #gas #pipelines in the state. Hochul has denied that any such deal was made.

#law #RenewableEnergy #energy #wind #climate

#Equinor, the developer behind #EmpireWind, recently said that those delays & other regulatory changes affecting US offshore #wind projects had cost the company nearly $1B.

At the same time as it thwarts the wind industry, the #Trump admin has taken several steps to boost #oil & #gas as well as #coal, the dirtiest & most expensive #FossilFuel when it comes to burning it for #electricity.

#law #RenewableEnergy #energy #WindFarm #climate #ClimateSolutions #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

The #Energy Dept on Thursday extended an *#emergency* order compelling a #Michigan coal-burning #PowerPlant to stay open past its retirement date. The dept has issued several orders to keep coal plants running past their planned closure dates, even in cases where the operators never sought an extension & ratepayers would shoulder the #costs of complying.

#Trump #law #RenewableEnergy #energy #WindFarm #wind #climate #ClimateSolutions #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis

…#Trump has been a critic of #wind #power for years, ever since he unsuccessfully tried to stop an offshore #WindFarm from being built in view of one of his Scottish golf courses. Trump has called the large turbines ugly & expensive & has insisted that offshore wind farms are killing endangered whales in the Atlantic Ocean [because he’s crazy], although scientists have said there is no evidence to support that claim.

#law #RenewableEnergy #energy #climate #ClimateSolutions #ClimateCrisis