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Business Wire
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Wire
Green Oceans and Allies Urge Interior Secretary Burgum to Halt All Offshore Wind Construction in New England Because of Flawed Permitting
LITTLE COMPTON, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Green Oceans, joined by a coalition of environmental, fishing, tribal, and community organizations, called upon U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to halt all offshore wind construction in the New England coastal waters. Citing a recent Government Accountability Office report that confirms repeated oversight failures by BOEM, the coalition urged Secretary Burgum to declare a comprehensive moratorium and begin a thorough reevaluation of the projects, including proper tribal consultation and cumulative impact analysis. The organizations–– Green Oceans, ACK for Whales, Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, Protect Our Westport Waters, Save Greater Dowses Beach, Save Right Whales Coalition, and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head/Aquinnah––collectively petitioned Secretary Burgum to rescind the approvals for the projects and begin a 'complete reevaluation' of their permits under applicable federal laws. They cited material deficiencies in environmental impact analyses and legal violations. The coalition cited serious fears about real and imminent threats to marine ecosystems, endangered North Atlantic right whales, Tribal Cultural Resources, national security, and the regional economy posed by Revolution Wind, Vineyard Wind, South Fork Wind, Sunrise Wind, SouthCoast Wind, and New England Wind. The projects' collective lease area occupies 1400 square miles of environmentally sensitive marine habitat; and if built out, would stretch from Long Island to Cape Cod. The letter, which identifies many and repeated material deficiencies in the government's approval process, the heavy burden to taxpayers, and the lack of material benefit emphasized the urgent need to act: Time is critical. Pile driving is resuming in waters currently occupied by nearly half of the remaining North Atlantic right whale population in the world. Without your immediate intervention, these projects will drive this highly endangered species closer to extinction, irreversibly damaging Tribal Cultural Resources, marine habitats, and biodiversity. As a nation, we have both a legal right and an ethical responsibility to protect these precious yet fragile resources. The letter also said the projects threaten: Critical habitat destruction impacting cod spawning grounds. Inadequate response to turbine blade failures and environmental cleanup. Severe adverse impacts on regional fisheries and economic displacement. Compromised national defense radar and marine safety capabilities. Misleading economic analyses that omit substantial regional job losses and increased electricity prices. "The future of our oceans and the countless species and communities depending on them rests on swift, decisive action," said Lisa Quattrocki Knight, President and co-founder of Green Oceans. "We respectfully call on Secretary Burgum to establish a lasting legacy of responsible ocean stewardship and lawful governance," she added. 'These projects could cost the US taxpayer over $60 billion in the next several years. They will raise the price of electricity. Higher electricity prices will displace manufacturing jobs. Fishing jobs have already been harmed. Most egregiously, these projects will not influence climate change,' said Dr. Knight. 'Every day that another pile is driven into the ecologically fragile seabed, more ocean is despoiled, more marine life is threatened, and the right whale moves closer to extinction. This is an urgent problem that needs an immediate remedy.' 'Once these turbines are built, we will have a recurring environmental catastrophe off our shores that will be difficult, if not impossible, to undo and afford. These predominantly foreign energy conglomerates that have been dependent upon federal dollars to construct them have also been unjustly relieved of the requirement to set aside funding for decommissioning. Instead, the taxpayers will be stuck with the bill. Better to stop the construction now before it's too late,' ACK for Whales President Val Oliver said. 'We are optimistic,' said Susanne Conley, Save Dowses Beach Executive Director. 'Secretary Burgum has expressed his skepticism of the offshore wind industry, writing on social media last month, 'The offshore wind industry has relied on tax subsidies for 30 years – not anymore.'' A copy of the letter can be found at
The Guardian
30-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Equinor may take legal action after Trump administration halted US windfarm plan
Norway's state energy company may take Donald Trump's administration to court after it ordered an 'unprecedented' halt to a $2.5bn (£1.87bn) windfarm project off the coast of New York. Equinor is considering its legal options after the US interior secretary, Doug Burgum, ordered the energy company to 'immediately halt all construction activities' on an offshore windfarm last month. Equinor is understood to have spent almost $2bn on the Empire windfarm project, which is almost a third complete and was expected to power the equivalent of 500,000 US homes once operating in 2027. Anders Opedal, the chief executive of Equinor, said: 'We have invested in Empire Wind after obtaining all necessary approvals, and the order to halt work now is unprecedented and in our view unlawful. 'We seek to engage directly with the US administration to clarify the matter and are considering our legal options.' The energy company, which is majority owned by the Norwegian government, has a 35-year history developing energy projects in the US. It estimates that it has invested more than $60bn in US oil, gas and renewables projects. The Empire project was approved under the Biden administration in 2023 as part of a major package of support from the former US president to accelerate plans to decarbonise the power grid and cut carbon emissions. However, president Trump on his first day back in office in January ordered a review of offshore wind permitting and leasing, accusing the previous administration of a rushed and insufficient analysis of the plans The review was seen as a blow to the burgeoning industry and wiped billions from the market value of Equinor as well as the Danish offshore wind company Ørsted, which also planned to build in US waters. Within months of opening the review the administration issued an order for Equinor to halt construction of the project, which began last year and employs about 1,500 workers. The stop-work order came as a shock to many industry commentators who had believed that projects that had already secured their approvals would be safe from Trump's industry review. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion In total there are four offshore wind projects under development off the US coast. In addition to the Empire project, Ørsted plans to build the Sunrise Wind project off the coast of New York and the Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island. In addition, the US energy company Dominion Energy is planning a windfarm off the Virginia coast. The New York state energy authority said the decision was fuelled by 'a shortsighted, political agenda'. Vincent Alvarez, the president of the New York City Central Labor Council, said: 'The reckless and overreaching move to halt construction that is already under way on Empire Wind threatens thousands of good union jobs and jeopardises the progress New York has made toward cleaner, more affordable energy.'
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wind power developer Orsted sees 2025 core profit equal to or above 2024
By Louise Rasmussen COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Orsted, the world's biggest offshore wind power developer, said on Thursday it expected core profit this year to be equal to, or above 2024, a day after cutting investment plans for coming years, sending its shares higher. After the market close on Wednesday, Orsted said it had decided to scale back the total amount it planned to invest for the years through 2030 by about 25% to shore up its finances in a challenging market. It also said it saw no need to raise new cash, and that the revised plan would allow the group to keep cutting costs given it would construct at a slower pace than previously planned. Shares in the Danish company were up 6% in early trade, trimming a year-to-date fall to 8%. Sydbank analyst Jacob Pedersen said many investors had feared the company would announce a capital increase. Offshore wind companies have faced challenges including rising costs, supply chain issues and planning delays. President Donald Trump created further uncertainty by suspending offshore wind leases on his first day in office last month. "Our ambition is to solidify our position as the undisputed leader in offshore wind," Rasmus Errboe, the company's CEO since Feb. 1, told journalists in a media call. He said the company expected market challenges to continue in 2025. "Our number one priority will be to deliver on our construction programme," he later added. Orsted said on Thursday most of its projects were progressing according to plan, but warned it continued to face supply chain and construction challenges at its two U.S. offshore construction projects Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind. "It would not be right for me to issue any guarantees in terms of further impairments," Errboe said, referring specifically to the two U.S. projects. Orsted guided for 2025 operating profit before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, new partnerships and cancellation fees of between 25 billion and 28 billion crowns ($3.5 billion-$3.9 billion). The outlook broadly matched analysts' average expectations, according to a company-provided poll. In its full-year earnings report on Thursday, Orsted confirmed a preliminary reading for 2024 of 24.8 billion crowns. "The year 2024 proved to be a challenging year for the industry and for Orsted," Errboe, said in the statement. "We've experienced headwinds and have therefore taken necessary actions." Shares in Orsted were up 4.37% at 1009 GMT. ($1 = 7.1798 Danish crowns) Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
06-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Wind power developer Orsted sees 2025 core profit in line with or higher than in 2024
COPENHAGEN, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Orsted ( opens new tab, the world's biggest offshore wind power developer, said on Thursday it expected core profit this year to be equal to, or above 2024, a day after cutting investment plans for coming years, sending its shares higher. After the market close on Wednesday, the Danish company said it had decided to scale back the total amount it planned to invest for the years through 2030 by about 25% to shore up its finances in a challenging market. It also said it saw no need to raise new cash, and that the revised plan would allow the group to keep cutting costs given it would construct at a slower pace than previously planned. Shares in Orsted were up 6% in early trade, trimming a year-to-date fall to 8%. Sydbank analyst Jacob Pedersen said many investors had feared the company would announce a capital increase. Offshore wind companies have faced challenges including rising costs, supply chain issues and planning delays. President Donald Trump created further uncertainty by suspending offshore wind leases on his first day in office last month. Orsted said on Thursday most of its projects were progressing according to plan, but warned it continued to face supply chain and construction challenges at its two U.S. offshore construction projects Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind. Orsted said it had successfully renegotiated and settled contracts related to the closure of its Ocean Wind projects in New Jersey with a better-than-expected outcome, resulting in a net reversal of cancellation fees of 7.3 billion crowns. The company guided for 2025 operating profit before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, new partnerships and cancellation fees of between 25 billion and 28 billion crowns ($3.5 billion-$3.9 billion). The outlook matched analysts' average expectations, according to a company-provided poll. In its full-year earnings report on Thursday, Orsted confirmed a preliminary reading for 2024 of 24.8 billion crowns. "The year 2024 proved to be a challenging year for the industry and for Orsted," Rasmus Errboe, new CEO since Feb. 1, said in the statement. "We've experienced headwinds and have therefore taken necessary actions." ($1 = 7.1798 Danish crowns)
