Saving Seafood

Trump halts work on New England offshore wind project that’s nearly complete

August 25, 2025 — The Trump administration halted construction on a nearly complete offshore wind project near Rhode Island as the White House continues to attack the battered U.S. offshore wind industry that scientists say is crucial to the urgent fight against climate change.

Danish wind farm developer Orsted says the Revolution Wind project is about 80% complete, with 45 out of its 65 turbines already installed.

Despite that progress — and the fact that the project had cleared years of federal and state reviews — the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued the order Friday, saying the federal government needs to review the project and “address concerns related to the protection of national security interests of the United States.”

It did not specify what the national security concerns are.

President Donald Trump has made sweeping strides to prioritize fossil fuels and hinder renewable energy projects. Trump recently called wind and solar power “THE SCAM OF THE CENTURY!” in a social media post and vowed not to approve wind or “farmer destroying Solar” projects. “The days of stupidity are over in the USA!!!” he wrote on his Truth Social site this week.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

Northeast fisheries center surveys wind energy areas

August 25, 2025 — Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration used its 25-foot DriX autonomous research vehicle for a 20-day spring mission in southern New England waters, collecting data on fish and plankton within five offshore wind energy areas.

Those wind power projects, like Ørsted’s Revolution Wind 65 turbines south of Rhode Island, are now under severe pressure from the Trump administration’s opposition to all forms of wind and solar generation.

But the amid the turmoil, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration researchers are still learning how the new generation of autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles can fill in the margins of ecosystem and fisheries surveys, in areas where it’s more difficult to operate NOAA’s big science ships.

The April 16-May 5 expedition by ocean researchers with the Northeast Fisheries Science Center was the second DriX survey out of Narragansett Bay, R.I., with the probe operating nearly around the clock for nearly three weeks.

“Uncrewed systems have the ability to support various stock and ecosystem assessments through data acquisition, particularly in areas that have traditionally been or are increasingly becoming challenging to sample,” Conor McManus, the Advanced Technology Program lead for the science center, said in a statement. “We are learning more about how marine ecosystems are changing while improving the technology and operations to be able to use it more expansively in the future.”

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Trump administration strikes at Revolution Wind project

August 25, 2025 — The Trump administration issued a stop-work order Friday on Ørsted’s Revolution Wind project, a 65-turbine, 704-megawatt array already almost complete off southern New England. The order followed an announcement Thursday that the administration will investigate “national security” issues around offshore wind power projects.

In a letter to Denmark-based Ørsted the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management cited national security as the reason for the agency’s sudden decision to review the project despite previous approvals under the Biden administration.

“Ørsted is evaluating all options to resolve the matter expeditiously,” including court action, the company said in a statement.

Revolution Wind, under construction off Rhode Island, has been vigorously opposed by the commercial fishing industry for its siting near Cox Ledge, an important habitat for cod. In 2023 fishermen’s fierce opposition led to the mass resignation of  the Rhode Island Fishermen’s Advisory Board, whose members charged the state Coastal Resource Management Council is too deferential to wind development interests at the expense of habitat and fisheries impacts.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

DELAWARE: Ørsted follows through with $5.2M land deal in Sussex

February 26, 2025 — Despite withdrawing plans for its Skipjack projects off of the coast of Delaware last year, Ørsted recently purchased a 64-acre property near Harbeson for $5.2 million.

The purchase, made under the business name Skipjack Offshore Energy, LLC., is the result of an agreement struck by the Danish wind turbine developer several years ago as conversations were swirling about the development of a wind farm in the area.

Ørsted Spokesperson Maddy Cronin confirmed the purchase and told the Delaware Business Times in an email, “This transaction is tied to an agreement struck in October 2023, prior to Ørsted’s decision to reposition the project. Pursuant to that October 2023 agreement, the transaction was finalized this month. Any future plans for the property would be subject to federal and local permits.”

Read the full article at Delaware Business Times 

DELAWARE: Ørsted buys 64 acres of land near Harbeson for $5.2 million

February 24, 2025 — Under the name Skipjack Offshore Energy LLC, Danish-based power company Ørsted has purchased a 64-acre piece of property near Harbeson for $5.2 million.

Located at the intersection of Walker and Diamond Farm roads, the piece of property encompasses the open field from Diamond Farm Road to the Anthem development. According to Sussex County sales records the sale was finalized Jan. 31.

Ørsted’s offshore wind competitor US Wind has been in the news recently as that company makes its way through the federal, state and county approval process, but this is the first time there’s been an Ørsted development locally in more than a year.

Ørsted has the development rights for an offshore wind farm on two federal lease sites in federal ocean waters off the coast of Delaware. Combined, the contiguous sites stretch from Rehoboth Beach south to Bethany Beach, and if fully built out, could produce 966 megawatts.

In January 2024, Ørsted announced it was still moving forward with development plans for the project, but withdrawing from a deal with the Maryland Public Service Commission to find better terms.

Read the full article at the Cape Gazette

Ørsted Ousts CEO as Pressure Continues in Offshore Wind Sector

February 3, 2025 — Danish renewable energy giant Ørsted reported today, January 31, a change in CEOs as the company continues to struggle with pressures in the offshore wind sector. The news of the change in leadership came just days after Ørsted reported it would be taking a further $1.7 billion in impairment charges related to its U.S. offshore wind projects following a massive $5.6 billion write-down in November 2023.

The board of directors announced that the company was replacing Mads Nipper who had led the company as Group President and CEO since January 2021. They reported he is stepping down effective tomorrow, February 1, but acknowledged during his four-year tenure Ørsted’s installed renewable capacity grew from 11.3 GW to the current 18.2 GW in 2025.

“The renewable energy market has fundamentally changed since January 2021. The impacts on our business of the increasingly challenging situation in the offshore wind industry, ranging from supply chain bottlenecks, interest rate increases, to a changing regulatory landscape, mean that our focus has shifted. Therefore, the board has today agreed with Mads Nipper that it’s the right time for him to step down, and the board has appointed Rasmus Errboe to take over as CEO,” announced Lene Skole, Chair of Ørsted’s Board of Directors.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

World’s largest offshore wind farm maker Orsted takes fresh $1.7 billion write-down in the U.S. as its Trump nightmare begins

January 21, 2025 — Danish offshore wind giant Orsted faced a fresh stock market hammering on Tuesday after the group announced a new billion-dollar impairment charge on the same day its foe Donald Trump ascended to the White House.

Shares plunged as much as 17% in early morning trading after the group disclosed an impairment of 12.1 billion Danish kroner ($1.69 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 as rising interest rates and falling wind farm valuations hit the company’s portfolio.

Orsted’s Sunrise Wind project, a 924-megawatt offshore wind farm in New York meant to power 600,000 homes, is expected to take longer than expected after the group took supply chain lessons from its previous Revolution Wind project installation in the U.S.

Mads Nipper, group president and CEO of Orsted, described the impairment and construction challenges as “very disappointing” but doubled down on his company’s commitment to the U.S.

“We remain committed to the US market in the long term with its potential for renewables to meet the growing electricity demand and create thousands of industrial jobs across the US,” said Nipper in a statement.

Read the full article at Fortune

Ørsted Has New U.S. Wind Partner as Eversource Exits and GIP Enters

October 2, 2024 — Institutional investors continue to show interest in the developing offshore energy sector demonstrated by the closing of a deal that rearranges the partnership for Ørsted in its U.S. offshore wind energy projects. Global Infrastructure Partners, which was acquired by famed group BlackRock, completed the previously announced deal to buy Eversource Energy’s 50 percent interest in two wind farms with Ørsted.

Eversource had previously announced its intent to exit the offshore wind sector to focus on operations as a pure-play regulated pipes and wires utility. They agreed earlier this year to sell their share of the planned Sunrise Wind project to Ørsted and yesterday completed the sale of its shares in South Fork Wind and Revolution Wind to Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP). While Eversource has exited its offshore wind investments, the company remains a contractor on the ongoing onshore construction scope for Revolution Wind, and a tax equity investor in South Fork Wind.

The final price for the 50 percent shares of the two U.S. offshore wind farms was $745 million, which was reduced by approximately $375 million from the original value of $1.12 billion on the deal. Eversource cited increased construction costs and delays for Revolution Wind. With a $370 million gain on the separate sale of Sunrise Wind, Eversource still expects to record a loss of $520 million for the divestiture of its offshore wind interests.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

RHODE ISLAND: This major offshore wind company just announced a big Providence expansion

September 3, 2024 — The Danish offshore wind developer that owns America’s first offshore wind farm and is building a second, much larger wind project off the Rhode Island coast is expanding its presence in the Ocean State.

Ørsted is moving its office in Providence, one of two co-headquarters for the company’s U.S. operations, into a new 17,470-square-foot space at 500 Exchange St. to accommodate a growing staff that is expected to more than double in the next few years.

The move from a smaller Exchange Terrace office comes not only as the company moves ahead with construction of Revolution Wind, a 65-turbine wind farm on which it is partnering with utility Eversource, but also just before the announcement of a decision that could see its investment in Southern New England grow even larger.

Read the full article at the Providence Journal

Construction Underway on New York’s Largest Offshore Wind Project

July 31, 2024 — Construction is underway in New York on what will be the state’s largest offshore wind farm.

A groundbreaking ceremony on Long Island officially kicked off the start of the project, which will support more than 800 direct jobs during its construction phase. It is said the project will stimulate economic benefits from the Capital Region to Long Island – including a $700 million investment in Suffolk County. Once completed, the 924-megawatt Sunrise Wind project will provide enough clean energy to power approximately 600,000 New York homes.

Developed by Ørsted, it will be built under “industry-leading project labor agreements” which officials say will ensure local union labor’s participation in all phases of construction.

Read the full story at Newsweek