New York Sues Trump Administration Over Freeze of Two Offshore Wind Projects
New York’s attorney general is challenging the Department of the Interior’s suspension of two offshore wind farms in federal court. The Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind projects were expected to power more than one million homes.
| Companies | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Orsted, Equinor |
|---|---|
| Sector | Énergie Éolienne |
| Theme | Régulation & Gouvernance |
Letitia James, New York State Attorney General, filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington against the U.S. Department of the Interior. The legal action targets the suspension order issued on December 22, which halted construction of two offshore wind farms off Long Island. According to the attorney general, this decision is arbitrary and unwarranted, as the projects had already undergone more than a decade of security reviews by federal, state, and local authorities.
Two Projects Under Construction Targeted
The Empire Wind farm, located approximately 14 miles southeast of Long Island, is projected to power more than 500,000 homes. Equinor, the Norwegian company developing the project, indicates that construction is approximately 60% complete. The Sunrise Wind farm, located about 30 miles east of Montauk, is expected to supply electricity to some 600,000 homes. Orsted, the Danish company responsible for this development, states that progress has reached approximately 45%.
The Department of the Interior justifies its decision on national security grounds. The federal administration maintains that the movement of massive turbine blades causes radar interference, creating clutter that can obscure legitimate targets or generate false alerts. These two projects are part of a group of five offshore wind farms suspended along the East Coast.
Multiplication of Legal Challenges
Developers Equinor and Orsted have also filed their own legal challenges. The states of Connecticut and Rhode Island have filed similar lawsuits. Letitia James had previously led a coalition of attorneys general from 17 states and Washington, D.C., challenging a Trump executive order. This January 20, 2025 order suspended approvals, permits, and loans for all wind energy projects, both onshore and offshore.
A federal judge in Massachusetts recently ruled in favor of this coalition by vacating the presidential order. The Trump administration responded days later with the stop-work order on East Coast projects. Spokespersons for the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management declined to comment, citing pending litigation.
Economic and Energy Stakes
The New York attorney general states that the suspension jeopardizes the state’s economy and power grid. Donald Trump has also expressed his opposition to offshore wind projects, calling them expensive and harmful to wildlife, as part of his policy favoring fossil fuels. The outcome of these multiple legal proceedings will determine the future of these infrastructures and their capacity to power New York homes.
