The Trump administration has suspended leases for five major offshore wind projects under construction off the US East Coast, citing national security concerns, triggering a sharp sell-off in shares of offshore wind developers.
The decision, announced by the US Department of the Interior on Monday, marks the latest setback for the sector under President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticised wind power as expensive, inefficient and visually intrusive. State officials, Democratic lawmakers and industry groups condemned the move as unjustified.
According to the Interior Department, the pause follows complaints from the Pentagon that the transport of large turbine blades and the highly reflective turbine towers could interfere with radar systems, potentially complicating the identification and tracking of security threats.
The suspension will give federal agencies “time to work with leaseholders and state partners to assess the possibility of mitigating the national security risks posed by these projects,” the department said.
“The prime duty of the United States government is to protect the American people,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.
The affected projects include Ørsted’s Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind developments, Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners’ Vineyard Wind 1, Dominion Energy’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, and Equinor’s Empire Wind 1.
Shares in Ørsted fell more than 12% following the announcement, while Dominion Energy and Equinor also traded lower.
Dominion warned that the suspension could threaten grid reliability for Virginia customers, including military bases and data centres supporting artificial intelligence.
“These electrons will power the datacentres that will win the AI race, support our war fighters, and build the nuclear warships needed to maintain our maritime supremacy,” the company said.
Ørsted said its projects were at an advanced stage and had been preparing to supply electricity to around one million homes across three states from next year.
“Ørsted is evaluating all options to resolve the matter expeditiously, together with its partners,” the company said.
Equinor said it was also assessing the impact of the suspension, while Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said their states were reviewing possible responses to the federal action.
“The Trump administration will look for any excuse to continue its assault on clean energy — and the thousands of good-paying jobs these projects bring — but there is no credible justification for this stoppage,” Hochul said.
Industry group the National Ocean Industries Association urged the administration to lift the pause swiftly, noting that the Pentagon had previously been involved in approving the projects.
“The regulatory process involves a rigorous framework for assessing the national security implications of proposed projects, and every project under construction has already undergone review by the Department of Defense with no objections,” said NOIA president Erik Milito.
Senior Democrats leading Senate environment and energy committees warned that the move could derail future permitting reforms. Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich said they would not support a bipartisan permitting package in 2026 unless the offshore wind halt was reversed.
The suspension follows earlier interventions by the administration, including an August order halting construction of Ørsted’s Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island, which was later overturned by a federal judge. Earlier this year, a stop-work order on Equinor’s Empire Wind was lifted as part of a compromise with New York state that cleared the way for a natural gas pipeline backed by Trump.
Trump campaigned on a pledge to end offshore wind development, arguing that turbines are too costly and harm wildlife, while promoting expanded oil and gas production.
The policy uncertainty has weighed heavily on developers. Ørsted raised $9.4 billion earlier this year to support its US projects after potential partners were deterred by the administration’s stance on wind energy. Burgum has previously said the administration is concerned that offshore wind installations could increase vulnerability to drone-based attacks.
