Feds Put Connecticut And Rhode Island Energy Goals At Risk
by Karla Ciaglo
FILE PHOTO: Ørsted reported that the first turbine of the Revolution Wind farm, shown above, was completed Sept. 3, 2024, off the coast of Rhode Island. Credit: Contributed photo / Kate Ciembronowicz for Orsted
Revolution Wind, a $4 billion, 704-megawatt offshore wind farm under construction about 15 miles south of Rhode Island that is designed to power more than 350,000 homes, has been abruptly halted by the Trump administration.
A letter issued late Friday by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management ordered work stopped, despite the project being more than 80% complete and promising both clean energy and economic benefits for southern New England.
Ørsted, the project’s lead developer, confirmed the directive Friday, saying it is “complying with the order and taking appropriate steps to stop offshore activities, ensuring the safety of workers and the environment,” while also evaluating regulatory and legal options to resolve the matter. The company earlier this month saw its shares plunge after announcing a $9.4 billion rights offering, citing investor concerns over President Trump’s opposition to wind power.
Dan Dolan, president of the New England Power Generators Association, called the move “deeply troubling,” warning that billions of dollars in nearly completed facilities are now at risk due to abrupt policy reversals.
The project, which has already seen a $4 billion investment, had foundations in place and 45 of 65 turbines installed in federal waters south of Rhode Island. It was projected to cut over one million metric tons of carbon pollution annually — the equivalent of taking 150,000 cars off the road.
Revolution Wind secured 20-year power-purchase agreements with local utilities in 2019 and was endorsed by both Rhode Island and Connecticut regulators as a cornerstone of their climate goals, supporting Rhode Island’s ambitious 100% renewable target by 2033 and Connecticut’s zero-carbon electricity grid by 2040. The project was seen as a major opportunity to expand offshore wind, diversify the region’s energy mix, reduce dependence on natural gas, and help stabilize New England’s historically volatile winter electricity prices.
Halting the completion of the project not only jeopardizes billions of dollars in nearly finished infrastructure but also puts hundreds of local jobs and critical progress toward regional clean energy goals at risk.
“New England needs forward momentum, not sudden stops that hurt both consumers and suppliers,” said Dolan, emphasizing that energy investments require policy certainty, market stability, and clear, consistent siting rules. “When projects like Revolution Wind have met every legal requirement, secured financing, and obtained a Capacity Supply Obligation, they should not face the rules being changed midstream,” he added, noting that such actions erode investor confidence and threaten long-term electric reliability.
He stressed that the region must continue building new energy infrastructure — whether conventional power plants, offshore wind, advanced nuclear, or other technologies — to meet growing demand.
The directive, issued in the letter from acting BOEM Director Matt Giacona, cited a January 20 memorandum signed by President Trump stating unspecified concerns related to “national security interests” and “prevention of the interference with reasonable uses of the exclusive economic zone, the high seas, and the territorial seas.”
Rejecting the Trump administration’s rationale, US Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, said he had been in contact Saturday with Ørsted’s leadership, his Connecticut and Rhode Island congressional colleagues, and representatives of the building trades.
“The claim by the administration that national security concerns have arisen is particularly galling, given that BOEM and the US Coast Guard meticulously analyzed the protection of US interests as part of the record of decision years ago,” Courtney said, noting that the review ensured that transit by Coast Guard vessels and US Navy warships would not be hindered by the placement of Revolution Wind turbines.
Courtney added that if the order is carried out, it would terminate the jobs of about 200 workers in the trades, among the industry’s suppliers, and from tugboat crews, while also canceling a critical expansion of energy capacity negotiated below the cost of current wind projects.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont and Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee condemned the Trump administration’s announcement.
“This political move … wastes years of state investment in renewable energy designed to diversify our energy supply and lower costs for families and businesses,” Lamont said.
McKee added, “This action puts hundreds of union jobs at risk … just steps away from powering more than 350,000 homes.”
Both governors said they are working together to reverse the decision and save the project.
This is a story of corruption, plain and simple. President Trump has sold our country out to big corporations with the oil and gas industry at the top of the list.
As a member of the New England electricity grid, power plants in Connecticut produce more electricity than Connecticut residents use each year.
Broken down by energy type, 58% of the electricity produced in Connecticut comes from Natural Gas, while 37% is from nuclear power. However, 85.5% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions from electricity are from Natural Gas.
Connecticut uses about 24.5% of the energy produced for the New England grid, while the power generators located in the Nutmeg state provide 41% of all the electricity consumed in New England.The average residential price of electricity per KWh in Connecticut is 30.11 cents, according to FindEnergy.com, ranking the state 50th in the nation. The average monthly residential electricity bill is $211.14, ranking the state 52nd.
US Sen. Chris Murphy said Trump’s order was an example of corruption by the Trump administration.
“When the oil industry showed up at Mar a Lago with a set of demands in exchange for a $1 billion of campaign support for Trump, this is what they were asking for: the destruction of clean energy in America. The decision to stop the Revolution Wind project, which is 80 percent compete and has already been approved through exhaustive reviews by multiple federal agencies, has nothing to do with energy policy or energy prices. This is a story of corruption, plain and simple. President Trump has sold our country out to big corporations with the oil and gas industry at the top of the list,” Murphy said. “I will work with my colleagues and Governor Lamont to pursue all legal paths to get this project back on track.”
US Sen. Richard Blumenthal also released a statement decrying the Trump administration’s decision.
“As Connecticut families’ electric bills skyrocket, the Trump Administration is canceling critical clean energy projects that would lower utility bills and have created good paying union jobs for our state’s workforce,” he said. “This arbitrary decision defies all logic and reason — Revolution Wind’s project was already well underway and employed hundreds of skilled tradesmen and women. This is a major setback for a critical project in Connecticut, and I will fight it.”