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(Reuters) – Norway’s Equinor will halt offshore construction of its Empire Wind I project in New York state, following a stop-work order from U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the company said on Thursday.
The sudden order marks a major blow for the company and the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry, which previously enjoyed substantial support as part of former President Joe Biden’s plan to decarbonise the power grid and combat climate change.
“We have decided to stop offshore construction of the project following the order,” Equinor’s spokesperson told Reuters.
“We will engage with the administration to find out why the order was issued after we had received all the permits previously,” she added.
Equinor declined to comment on the potential consequences for the project going forward, but said it would continue the construction of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, a facility dedicated to offshore wind operations and maintenance.
The Interior Department decision stems from a review of offshore wind permitting and leasing that President Donald Trump ordered on his first day back in office in January.
Interior officials did not respond to a request for additional comment.
Equinor has already spent some $2 billion on the Empire Wind project, which was approved by the Biden administration in November 2023. Construction began last year.
The project’s 810-megawatt capacity could generate enough electricity to power 700,000 homes a year and was expected to begin operating in 2027.
Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis; Editing by Essi Lehto and Joe Bavier
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