US court will weigh New York's challenge to Trump's offshore wind halt

On Wednesday, a U.S. court will decide whether or not to allow Norwegian offshore developer Equinor the opportunity to resume the construction of the Empire Wind Project off the coast of New York. The company is suing the Trump administration for its suspension of the industry.

The hearing at the U.S. District Court of Washington takes place two days after that same court ruled the Danish offshore wind developer Orsted can restart work on the nearly completed Revolution Wind?project in Rhode Island. Other projects are also struggling with the?freeze.

Equinor spent $4 billion already on the project and stated in court documents that it would be terminated if they could not proceed by January 16th.

Empire Wind is situated 20 miles off the coast of Long Island. It is approximately 60% complete. The project is expected to produce enough electricity for about 500,000 homes.

Equinor’s request for an order of injunction in front of U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols represents the latest legal challenge to President Donald Trump’s assault by the entire U.S. government on the offshore-wind sector.

Court?decisions are of high importance to companies and shareholders, as they may allow for multi-billion-dollar projects?to go ahead. However, the lawsuits underlying these decisions will continue creating uncertainty.

Trump's Interior Department halted activities on five offshore wind leases last month, citing classified information about risks to "national security" from radar interference. The administration said that the concerns were "revealed" in an assessment of the Defense Department presented to the Interior Department last November.

Under Trump, developers of offshore wind, including Equinor, have been subjected to repeated disruptions. Trump claims that wind turbines are ugly and expensive, as well as inefficient. Empire Wind had been halted by the Trump administration last year for a whole month. (Reporting and editing by Nichola Broom)

(source: Reuters)