Trump administration lifts pause on wind energy permitting but buys out one more developer

Environmental groups and some states were cheered by the Trump administration’s decision to dismiss its own appeal to pause wind energy permitting last week.

However, the Trump administration said Wednesday it’s buying back another energy company’s U.S. offshore wind leases for four more wind projects, as it seeks to discourage the expansion of wind energy in favor of fossil fuels.

“Obstructing clean energy projects is not energy dominance; it makes us weaker and more reliant on unpredictable fossil fuel markets,” said Michael Colvin, California Energy Program Director at Environmental Defense Fund. “As families face soaring bills driven by fossil fuel price spikes, we need to bring more reliable clean energy like offshore wind onto the grid.”

“This win sends a clear message that we will keep moving forward and fighting to ensure that communities in California have clean and affordable energy,” said Eddie Ahn with Brightline Defense, who led an amicus brief in this case with the City of San Francisco.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said he celebrated after the Trump Administration abandoned its effort to indefinitely pause all permitting and approval activities related to onshore or offshore wind energy projects through a “Day One” Presidential Wind Memorandum.

Trump Administration Opposition

However, a wind energy representative, who asked not to be identified, told AJOT that the Trump administration has created so many barriers to wind energy developments that the process of reinstituting wind power development will take time.

Peter Dreyfuss, Board Member, Propeller Club of Northern California, attended the California Offshore Wind Summit that took place in Long Beach last month. He told AJOT that even with the legal victory, wind energy developers are unlikely to support an offshore wind investment until there is a change of administration in 2029: “The bad news is that foreign investors are not coming back soon, but they may come back after surgery. This is defined as post-election 2029, along with tax, leasing, and finance reforms. Will offshore exist in California? Yes, but not until 2029.”

Wind Developer Agrees To Buyback Withdrawal

The Trump administration said Wednesday it is buying back another energy company’s U.S. offshore wind leases as it seeks to discourage the expansion of wind energy in favor of fossil fuels, the Associated Press reported.

The latest deal brings the total amount spent on these agreements to nearly $2.6 billion.

Chicago-based Invenergy has agreed to end its four offshore wind leases that were very early in development in exchange for reimbursements of lease fees totaling $765 million. The company had already canceled the largest of the four in November, Leading Light Wind off New Jersey’s coast. The others are off the coasts of Maine and California. It will invest that money in natural gas and geothermal ventures that allegedly can be built more quickly instead.

By buying back leases, the Trump administration is stopping offshore wind farms that President Donald Trump does not support and redirecting the money to fossil fuel projects that he does. It adopted this strategy after federal courts thwarted Trump’s efforts to stop offshore wind development through executive action.

Trump has frequently talked about his hatred of wind power and calls turbines ugly, AP noted.

Wind Energy Job Losses

California port officials have told AJOT that delayed offshore wind projects may cost California as much as 10,000 new jobs. For example, blocking of wind developers has had a devastating impact on Humboldt County in Northern California where the projection was that offshore wind farms would have required 3,000-5,000 new jobs at Humboldt Bay. Similar projections for new jobs are associated with the projected development of the Pier Wind offshore wind port at the Port of Long Beach.

Impact on Energy Costs

Hillary Bright, executive director of offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward, told the AP that these buyouts are not one-for-one ‘swaps’ for another kind of energy, since the replacement projects won’t deliver power to the same states as the offshore wind farms would have.

“Replacing coastal offshore wind with geothermal or natural gas infrastructure in another region does nothing to address rising ratepayer affordability concerns, reliability challenges or potential gaps in power supply in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic,” she said in a statement.

Turn Forward sponsored a report that explains this assertion, finding that cutbacks in wind energy projects by the Trump administration are not being offset by natural gas replacements, thus contributing to higher electricity prices:

“A new report from Charles River Associates, released today through Turn Forward’s Energy Research Exchange, finds that the Northeast power grid is under growing stress due to increased demand from electrification and limits on natural gas availability during peak load periods, especially in wintertime. Locally generated resources like offshore wind that deliver power at scale during high-stress conditions can enhance electric reliability and help contain costs in New England and New York.

Offshore wind power directly addresses regional reliability challenges by providing critical support during high-stress periods like temperature extremes when power demand surges and fuel supplies are strained. Over the next decade, CRA’s report forecasts Northeast winter electricity demand rising by more than 12,000 MW (equivalent to 3M homes), heightening the need for resources like offshore wind that perform well when the grid undergoes stress in both winter and historical summer peak conditions.”

Legal Challenge Background

In May 2025, California and a multistate coalition filed a lawsuit challenging the Wind Memorandum and in December, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a judgment in favor of the multistate coalition, declaring the challenged section of the Presidential Wind Memorandum unlawful and vacating it in its entirety. While the Trump Administration initially appealed the order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, last week the Administration reversed course and filed a motion to dismiss its appeal. Today's judgment granting the voluntary dismissal of the United States’ appeal cements the states’ victory and is the final resolution of this matter, according to the California Attorney General’s office.

Soaring Electricity Costs

“As energy costs soar, the Trump Administration illegally attempted to halt the leasing and permitting of wind energy projects, even though wind energy is a source of clean, reliable, and affordable energy. California and our sister states went to court to stop this unlawful overreach, and in the end, the Trump Administration waved the white flag,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Today’s victory is a major win for American families, clearing the way for investments that will create jobs, expand access to affordable energy, and help reduce the burden of rising utility costs on households across this country. California and its sister states will continue to hold the President and his Administration accountable when they break the law.”