Trump administration suspends 5 wind projects off the East Coast, cites
national security concerns
[December 23, 2025]
By MATTHEW DALY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Monday suspended leases
for five large-scale offshore wind projects under construction along the
East Coast due to what it said were national security risks identified
by the Pentagon.
The suspension, effective immediately, is the latest step by the
administration to hobble offshore wind in its push against renewable
energy sources. It comes two weeks after a federal judge struck down
President Donald Trump’s executive order blocking wind energy projects,
calling it unlawful.
The administration said the pause will give the Interior Department,
which oversees offshore wind, time to work with the Defense Department
and other agencies to assess the possible ways to mitigate any security
risks posed by the projects. The statement did not detail the national
security risks. It called the move a pause, but did not specify an end
date.
“The prime duty of the United States government is to protect the
American people,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.
“Today’s action addresses emerging national security risks, including
the rapid evolution of the relevant adversary technologies, and the
vulnerabilities created by large-scale offshore wind projects with
proximity near our east coast population centers.”
Wind proponents slammed the move, saying it was another blow in an
ongoing attack by the administration against clean energy. The
administration’s decision to cite potential national security risks
could complicate legal challenges to the move, although wind supporters
say those arguments are overstated.
Projects paused over national security concerns
The administration said leases are paused for the Vineyard Wind project
under construction in Massachusetts, Revolution Wind in Rhode Island and
Connecticut, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, and two projects in New
York: Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind.
The Interior Department said unclassified reports from the U.S.
government have long found that the movement of massive turbine blades
and the highly reflective towers create radar interference called
“clutter.” The clutter caused by offshore wind projects can obscure
legitimate moving targets and generate false targets in the vicinity of
wind projects, the Interior Department said.
National security expert and former Commander of the USS Cole Kirk
Lippold disputed the administration’s national security argument. The
offshore projects were awarded permits “following years of review by
state and federal agencies,” including the Coast Guard, the Naval
Undersea Warfare Center, the Air Force and more, he said.
“The record of decisions all show that the Department of Defense was
consulted at every stage of the permitting process,” Lippold said,
arguing that the projects would benefit national security because they
would diversify the country's energy supply.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I, said Revolution Wind was thoroughly
vetted and fully permitted by the federal government, “and that review
included any potential national security questions.” Burgum's action
"looks more like the kind of vindictive harassment we have come to
expect from the Trump administration than anything legitimate,'' he
said.
A judge ruled blocking wind projects was unlawful
The administration's action comes two weeks after a federal judge struck
down Trump’s executive order blocking wind energy projects, saying the
effort to halt virtually all leasing of wind farms on federal lands and
waters was “arbitrary and capricious” and violates U.S. law.
Judge Patti Saris of the U.S. District Court for the District of
Massachusetts vacated Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order blocking wind
energy projects and declared it unlawful.
Saris ruled in favor of a coalition of state attorneys general from 17
states and Washington, D.C., led by New York Attorney General Letitia
James, that challenged Trump’s Day One order that paused leasing and
permitting for wind energy projects.
Trump has been hostile to renewable energy, particularly offshore wind,
and prioritizes fossil fuels to produce electricity. Trump has said wind
turbines are ugly, expensive and pose a threat to birds and other
wildlife.
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A generator and it's blades are prepared to head to the open ocean
for the South Fork Wind farm from State Pier in New London, CT.,
Dec. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
Wind proponents slam the move
Wind supporters called the administration's actions illegal and said
offshore wind provides some of the most affordable, reliable electric
power to the grid.
“For nearly a year, the Trump administration has recklessly obstructed
the build-out of clean, affordable power for millions of Americans, just
as the country’s need for electricity is surging,” said Ted Kelly of the
Environmental Defense Fund.
“Now the administration is again illegally blocking clean, affordable
energy," Kelly said. “We should not be kneecapping America’s largest
source of renewable power, especially when we need more cheap, homegrown
electricity.''
The administration's actions are especially egregious because, at the
same time, it is propping up aging, expensive coal plants "that barely
work and pollute our air,” Kelly said.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong called the lease suspension a
“lawless and erratic stop-work order” that revives an earlier, failed
attempt to halt construction of Revolution Wind.
“Every day this project is stalled is another day of lost work, another
day of unaffordable energy costs and burning fossil fuels when
American-made clean energy is within reach," Tong said. “We are
evaluating all legal options, and this will be stopped just like last
time.”
Suspension is praised by anti-wind group
A New Jersey group that opposes offshore wind hailed the
administration's actions.
“Today, the president and his administration put America first,'' said
Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast New Jersey, a nonprofit
advocacy group.
“Placing largely foreign-owned wind turbines along our coastlines was
never acceptable," he said, arguing that Empire Wind, in particular,
poses a threat because of its close proximity to major airports,
including Newark Liberty, LaGuardia and JFK.
Offshore wind projects also pose a threat to commercial and recreational
fishing industries, Shaffer and other critics say.
Developers of U.S. offshore projects include Denmark-based Orsted,
Norway-based Equinor and a subsidiary of Spanish energy giant Iberdrola.
Orsted, which owns two of the projects affected, saw stock prices
decline by more than 11% Monday.
Richmond-based Dominion Energy, which is developing Coastal Virginia
Offshore Wind, said its project is essential for national security and
meeting Virginia’s dramatically growing energy needs, driven by dozens
of new data centers.
“Stopping CVOW for any length of time will threaten grid reliability ...
lead to energy inflation and threaten thousands of jobs,” the company
said in a statement.
Pausing the Virginia project, which is nearly 70% complete, creates a
“perfect storm” to harm customer affordability and grid reliability,
said David Shepheard, an energy expert at Baringa, a global consulting
firm.
East Coast residents are familiar with winter storms that can devastate
local economies, Shepheard said, adding: “This is a new one for the
area: a Washington-borne nor'easter where the political winds are going
to stop the blades from spinning."
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Associated Press writer Jennifer McDermott in Providence, R.I.,
contributed to this report.
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