Orsted Challenges U.S. Decision To Halt Its $5 Billion Offshore Wind Project

Denmark-based energy firm Ørsted has indicated it will challenge the U.S. government’s decision to suspend the lease for its Revolution Wind joint venture and is seeking a court injunction to overturn the move to halt the $5 billion offshore wind project, according to a Reuters report.

The Trump administration on December 22 suspended leases for five large offshore wind projects under construction off the U.S. East Coast, citing national security concerns.

The announcement sent shares of offshore wind developers sharply lower.

The suspension marked the latest setback for offshore wind developers, who have faced repeated disruptions to multi-billion-dollar projects under U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has previously criticised wind turbines as unattractive, costly and inefficient.

Ørsted said in a statement on Friday that the Revolution Wind project was about 87 percent complete and, prior to the lease suspension, was expected to begin generating power as early as January 2026.

“Revolution Wind has spent and committed billions of dollars in reliance upon, and has met the requirements of, a thorough regulatory review process,” Ørsted said.

Revolution Wind LLC, a 50-50 joint venture between Ørsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables, has filed a complaint with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Ørsted and Skyborn Renewables said in September that they had already spent or committed approximately $5 billion on the project.

Ørsted’s share price fell 13 percent on Monday following the U.S. government’s announcement.

Squeezed by inflation, higher interest rates, supply-chain disruptions and regulatory headwinds, Ørsted last year raised 60 billion Danish crowns ($9.4 billion) through a heavily discounted share issue to strengthen its balance sheet.

State officials, Democratic lawmakers and industry trade groups have criticised the government’s decision as unjustified.

The U.S. Department of the Interior said the suspension followed complaints from the Pentagon, which argued that the movement of large turbine blades and the highly reflective turbine towers could interfere with radar systems used to detect and track security threats.

Sunrise Wind LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ørsted that also received a lease suspension order, said it continues to evaluate all options to resolve the matter.