Saving Seafood

Trump Administration Asks Court to Let It Re-Evaluate Revolution Wind’s COP

October 14, 2026 — The Trump administration is renewing its challenges to Ørsted’s offshore wind farm, Revolution Wind, located off the coast of Rhode Island. The Department of Justice is asking a District Court in the District of Columbia to remand its prior approval of the construction and operations plan (“COP”) for further review on a project that has completed construction and is in the final stages of commissioning.

It marks the third time the Trump administration has challenged the 704 MW wind farm project, which is contracted to supply power to Connecticut and Rhode Island. In August 2025, it sought to stop construction while the project was approximately 80 percent complete, but it was rejected by the courts. In December 2025, the administration included Revolution Wind in its stop-work orders, this time contending the operations posed a risk to national security due to the potential for radar interference. The courts again rejected the stop-work order and let the project resume construction in January 2026.

The Department of Justice made its new filing in a case being pursued by an environmental group that has been challenging the project in the courts for years. Green Ocean has been suing the Department of the Interior and Revolution Wind, contending the project would cause harm to the environment.

The new filing made on October 9 asked the court to grant Green Ocean a summary judgment on its claims against the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, related to the approval of the project. Further, it says the Department of the Interior agrees that remand of its prior approval of the construction and operations plan (COP) for the Revolution Wind Project is warranted so that the agency can reevaluate its compliance with the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

Wind farms and rescue helicopters don’t mix, fishermen warned years ago. They were right

September 30, 2026 — An expedition team this week identified the wreck of the Mistress, a fishing vessel that sank next to a wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island on Jan. 1, 2019, taking with it the captain and his nephew.

The discovery of the long-missing trawler and the remains of the two fishermen prompted demands for a federal investigation into whether the wind farm operator, Orsted, discovered the wreck years ago and kept it quiet.

The Mistress wreck has also revived calls to examine the safety risks associated with offshore wind turbines that, when positioned closely together, can make it virtually impossible for the U.S. Coast Guard to conduct nighttime rescues of distressed vessels, particularly in stormy weather.

The exact cause of the Mistress’ sinking hasn’t been determined.

There is no evidence the ship struck the easternmost turbine of the Block Island Wind Farm, where a private diving crew recently identified the sunken boat.

But the turbines forced the Coast Guard to abandon their rescue attempt in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, 2019, when the Mistress had taken on water during a sudden storm and the captain issued a mayday call.

“They had a helicopter there, and they had to let it go,” said John Ansay, whose son, John Ansay Jr., went down with the Mistress two days after his 31st birthday.

Read the full article at The Washington Times

Offshore wind job training built for a boom is facing down a bust

September 22, 2026 — This story was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. ​

A former Navy sailor and union laborer from Local 1298 on Long Island, William “Billy” Bishop jumped at the chance to work on the water again when he learned two years ago about job opportunities on offshore wind construction projects.

After earning a safety certification from the National Offshore Wind Training Center — a collaboration between Long Island’s Suffolk County Community College, the Long Island Federation of Labor, and multinational wind farm developer Orsted — Bishop worked on a wind farm near Rhode Island. Now he’s doing structural inspections and maintenance on Sunrise Wind, which is under construction off the coast of Long Island in New York.

But the Trump administration’s efforts to crush offshore wind projects, part of its broader assault on clean energy, have created deep uncertainty for training programs like NOWTC and workers like Bishop.

“I would definitely do this forever, and I’ve looked into it since getting the job. But I see contracts are falling through nonstop now in America,” said Bishop. “This might be the last one for a while.”

In 2021, the Biden administration set a target to generate 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by the end of the decade, starting from almost zero, which jump-started a massive effort to train people for jobs in the industry. That rapid ramp-up would have required an estimated 77,000 workers — to build the wind farms, connect the turbines to the grid, operate and maintain the facilities, manufacture the rugged steel components, and more.

Read the full article at Grist

US Offshore Wind Project Revolution Wind Installs Last Turbine

September 21, 2026 — One of the few large offshore wind projects proceeding in the United States, Revolution Wind completed the installation of its 65th and final wind turbine. The project began delivering power in March despite repeated opposition from the Trump administration and now expects to complete its commissioning by the end of the year.

Revolution Wind is being developed in a 50-50 partnership between Orsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables. Media reports indicate it represents an investment of $6.2 billion to develop and will become the third large, commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the United States to be completed. It is located in Rhode Island Sound, not too far from the Vineyard Wind and South Fork Wind projects, which have already been completed and commissioned.

The project received its final approvals in November 2023 after the companies noted more than nine years of planning and permitting. It has 20-year power purchase agreements to deliver 400 MW to Rhode Island and 304 MW to Connecticut.

The project started offshore construction in 2024, and by August 2025 it was reported to be nearly 80 percent complete. The first of its turbines was installed in September 2024, and by August 2025, Revolution Wind said 45 of the 65 Siemens Gamesa turbines were installed.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

As offshore wind projects begin operations, cause of Vineyard Wind blade incident remains unknown

March 31, 2026 —  The Biden administration set out to spread 30 gigawatts of offshore wind on the coasts of the United States. While that goal wasn’t reached before President Donald Trump took office, several projects were approved and continued with construction.

Earlier this month, Vineyard Wind off the coast of Nantucket finished construction, The Nantucket Current reported. Shortly after, offshore wind developer Orsted announced that the Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island began providing intermittent power to New England. This week, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project off the coast of Virginia Beach began providing intermittent power to the grid, Virginia Business reported.

Despite concerns about the impacts of offshore wind to electricity rates and whales, Biden’s wind projects move rapidly ahead. The federal analysis of what caused a catastrophic blade failure on Vineyard Wind in July 2024 still hasn’t been published.

Read the full article at Just The News

Ørsted’s Sunrise Wind Receives Injunction Against Trump Administration

February 3, 2026 — A U.S. District Court Judge issued a preliminary injunction on Monday, February 2, for Sunrise Wind against the Trump administration’s December stop-work order. With today’s ruling, all five of the under-construction offshore wind farms have received permission to resume work despite the administration’s claims of new information about potential radar interference from the wind turbine blades and towers.

Ørsted’s Sunrise Wind had reported in early January that it would follow the lead of the other wind farms and also file seeking a court order. The company said that its project was 45 percent complete, with 44 of its 84 foundations installed as part of a total investment of $7 billion.

The New York Times reports that Judge Royce Lamberth said during a two-hour hearing today that he was unconvinced after reviewing under seal the classified report, which is the basis for the government’s claims about national security issues.

“Purportedly new classified information does not constitute a sufficient explanation,” the judge ruled, according to The New York Times. Lambert reportedly called the administration’s actions “likely arbitrary and capricious” and ruled the company would be irreparably harmed unless work resumed.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

 

 

Judge Strikes Down Trump’s Latest Effort to Stop Offshore Wind Project

January 13, 2026 — A federal judge on Monday ruled that construction could resume on a $6.2 billion wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island, striking down the Trump administration’s decision last month to halt work on the Revolution Wind project.

Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the Interior Department’s suspension order was “arbitrary and capricious” in violation of federal law.

Revolution Wind is one of five offshore wind projects under construction along the East Coast that were ordered to stop work last month by the Trump administration, which cited unspecified national security concerns. Several states, as well as developers of four of the projects, have challenged the move in court. The case involving Revolution Wind was the first complaint to be heard.

The decision is a temporary victory for Revolution Wind and the offshore wind industry, which has been roiled by the Trump administration’s efforts to block offshore wind farms that had received permits under the Biden administration. Orsted, the Danish energy giant that is building Revolution Wind, can now continue with construction as litigation it has filed against the Trump administration proceeds.

Read the full article at The New York Times

Offshore wind developer prevails in U.S. court as Trump calls wind farms ‘losers’

January 13, 2026 — A federal judge ruled Monday that work on a major offshore wind farm for Rhode Island and Connecticut can resume, handing the industry at least a temporary victory as President Trump seeks to shut it down.

At the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Senior Judge Royce Lamberth said the government did not explain why it could not take action short of a complete stop to construction on Revolution Wind while it considers ways to mitigate its national security concerns. He said it also did not provide sufficient reasoning for its change in position.

Revolution Wind has received all of its federal permits and is nearly 90% complete to provide power for Rhode Island and Connecticut.

Trump says his goal is to not let any “windmills” be built. Three energy developers are challenging the administration’s freeze of their offshore wind projects in the federal courts this week.

Danish energy company Orsted, Norwegian company Equinor, and Dominion Energy Virginia each sued to ask the courts to vacate and set aside the administration’s Dec. 22 order to freeze five big projects on the East Coast over national security concerns. Orsted’s hearing was first on its Revolution Wind project. Orsted said it will soon resume construction to deliver affordable, reliable power to the Northeast.

Read the full article at The Associated Press

Another reprieve for Revolution Wind

January 13, 2026 — For the second time a federal court on Monday turned back the Trump administration’s attempt to shut down the Revolution Wind energy project off southern New England, handing wind power developers another temporary reprieve in an on-again, off-again legal battle.

 U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled developer Ørsted “would be irreparably harmed” unless work on the almost 90 percent complete turbine array is allowed to continue, while the company disputes the government’s Dec. 22 claim that “national security” required an immediate stop-work order.

 The judge’s temporary injunction mirrors an earlier ruling he issued in September a few weeks after the administration attempted then to halt Revolution Wind. Of the Dec. 22 order, Judge Lamberth wrote, the decision appeared “arbitrary and capricious” and violating the Administrative Procedure Act that requires detailed rationale for rule changes and a public comment period.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

Trump’s offshore wind project freeze draws lawsuits from states and developers

January 8, 2026 — Offshore wind developers affected by the Trump administration’s freeze of five big projects on the East Coast are fighting back in court, with one developer saying its project will likely be terminated if they can’t resume by the end of next week.

Norwegian company Equinor and the Danish energy company Orsted are the latest to sue, with the limited liability companies for their projects filing civil suits late Tuesday. Connecticut and Rhode Island filed their own request on Monday seeking a preliminary injunction for a third project.

The administration announced Dec. 22 it was suspending leases for at least 90 days on the five offshore wind projects because of national security concerns. Its announcement did not reveal specifics about those concerns.

President Donald Trump has been hostile to renewable energy technologies that produce electricity cleanly, particularly offshore wind, and has instead prioritized oil, coal and natural gas that emit carbon pollution when burned.

Read the full article at the Associated Press