The Trump administration can't continue to keep work paused on a major offshore wind farm for Rhode Island and Connecticut while it reviews its national security concerns, a federal judge ruled Monday.
Work on the nearly completed Revolution Wind project has been paused since Aug. 22 when the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a stop work order for what it said were national security concerns. It did not specify those concerns at the time. Both the developer and the two states sued in federal courts.
Danish energy company Orsted and its joint venture partner Skyborn Renewables sought a preliminary injunction in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., that would allow them to move forward with the project.
Judge Royce Lamberth held a hearing on that request Monday. Lamberth said he considered how Revolution Wind has relied on its federal approval, the delays are costing $2.3 million a day and if the project can't meet deadlines, the entire enterprise could collapse. After December, the specialized ship needed to complete the project won't be available until at least 2028, he said. More than 1,000 people have been working on the wind farm, which is 80% complete.
“There is no question in my mind of irreparable harm to the plaintiffs,” Lamberth said, as he granted the motion for the preliminary injunction.
The Interior Department has said that the department doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
Revolution Wind is supposed to be Rhode Island’s and Connecticut’s first, large offshore wind farm, capable of providing about 2.5% of the region’s electricity needs.
Orsted began construction in 2024 about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of the Rhode Island coast. It says in its complaint that about $5 billion has been spent or committed, and it expects more than $1 billion in costs if the project is canceled. Rhode Island is already home to one offshore wind farm, the five-turbine Block Island Wind Farm.
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