The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Friday halted construction on Revolution Wind, a nearly completed project about 12 miles off of the Island's western tip, due to national security concerns.
The Trump administration Friday halted construction on a nearly completed offshore wind energy farm off Aquinnah, citing concerns related to national security.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management sent a letter to Revolution Wind ordering the company to stop any work at the 65-turbine project about 12 miles to the southwest of the Island’s western tip.
Revolution Wind already had all of its approvals from the federal government and was about 80 per cent completed when the order came from BOEM, an agency tasked with overseeing offshore wind.
This is the latest and boldest move by the Trump administration against offshore wind, and drew condemnation from environmental organizations and lawmakers. Ørsted, which has a 50 per cent stake in the wind farm, said in a statement Friday that it is complying with the order and considering its next steps.
“Ørsted is evaluating the potential financial implications of this development, considering a range of scenarios, including legal proceedings,” the company wrote.
BOEM gave few details on the concerns in its letter to Revolution Wind, and the agency didn’t respond to a request for comment Friday. Acting director Matthew Giacona wrote that the work stoppage was to allow BOEM time to address concerns that arose during a review by the department stemming from an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office.
“In particular, BOEM is seeking to address concerns related to the protection of national security interests of the United States and prevention of interference with reasonable uses of the exclusive economic zone, the high sea, and the territorial seas,” Mr. Giacona wrote.
The Department of Commerce earlier this month said it would be launching an investigation to determine the effects of importing wind turbine parts on national security.
The department was interested in learning if domestic production of wind turbine parts could meet the demand in the U.S. It also wanted to look into the potential effects on international trade, and the possibility of other nations weaponizing the turbines, according to a memo from the department.
Since the offshore wind energy industry is still in its fledgling phase in the U.S., many of the parts are manufactured in foreign countries that have a deeper well of experience in the field. Revolution Wind’s 873-foot tall turbines are manufactured by Siemens Gamesa, which has headquarters in Spain and Germany.
Revolution Wind, which can be seen on the horizon off Aquinnah, was supposed to supply power to Rhode Island and Connecticut. Connecticut U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal was critical of the decision to shut down construction, saying it comes as residents’ electric bills are skyrocketing.
“This arbitrary decision defies logic and reason — Revolution Wind’s project was already well underway and employed hundreds of skilled tradesmen and women,” he wrote on social media. “This is a major setback for a critical project in CT, and I will fight it.”
Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee issued a statement Saturday saying the delay and disruption by the Trump administration undermines his state’s efforts to expand its energy supply.
“We are working with our partners in Connecticut to pursue every avenue to reverse this decision,” he said. “Revolution Wind is key to Rhode Island’s economic development, energy security, and long-term affordability for our residents.”
Offshore wind energy has come under fire since President Trump started his second term. The President signed an executive order in January that halted any future permitting of projects and ordered a review of all leases in the U.S.
Many supporters of offshore wind energy at the time believed that projects that had already received approvals would be okay to continue, but this is the second time that a permitted project has been halted by the Trump administration. Empire Wind, a project off the coast of New York, was halted briefly in May, though the administration backed down and later allowed construction to continue.
The latest swipe at wind power was concerning for Jason Grumet, the CEO of the American Clean Power Association, a group that supports renewable energy.
“This is not the first time extreme partisan politics has derailed sound energy policy,” he said. “The unfortunate message to investors is clear: the U.S. is no longer a reliable place for long-term energy investments.”
Some in the region that have been against wind energy applauded the decision.
Cheryl Andrews-Maltais, the chairwoman of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) tribal council, has for years asked regulators to slow down to consider the effects of wind farms on the ocean, views from the Gay Head Cliffs and security. She saw Friday's order as a sign that the government is belatedly taking that step.
“We are just really relieved that we are finally getting our voices heard and they are going to take a more critical look at it,” she said.
Green Oceans, another group that has launched legal efforts to stop offshore wind, applauded BOEM’s decision, saying it will help preserve the fragile ocean environment off the Massachusetts and Rhode Island coasts.
“For three years, we have been fighting this battle in court and in the court of public opinion,” said co-founder Bill Thompson. “This decisive action demonstrates that the federal government finally recognizes the seriously flawed permitting process that allowed this project and others to move forward.”
Comments
Govenor McKee may want to
John Oak BluffsGovenor McKee may want to keep an eye on his electricity bill as off shore wind will only be increasing the cost of electricity for everyone. Building these things in the middle of the ocean isn’t going to make energy cheaper, ever.
And also Mr Grumet - “extreme partisan politics” is how we got here, a “sound energy policy” should not be reliant on a source that functions 30% of the time, is a logistical nightmare to maintain and has no plan in place to remove these giant hunks of rusted steel - which is what they will be in 20 years.
Sometimes it's hard to
Chris Mara EdgartownSometimes it's hard to explain how electricity and how our electrical grid works but I'll try. 60%-70% of the time (not 30%) when the turbines are spinning they add to the "load" of the electrical grid. That means the fossil fuel plants don't have to run or run less. That means that much less pollution in the air that we and our families breath. Demand is growing every year. How do we meet it? Build a fossil fuel plant? (that takes 10 years) Build a nuclear plant? (that takes 20 years). The economics of wind turbines are different but easily understandable if you look at the picture of energy supply and how to meet it. In the end they are the cheapest way to meet the increasing demands for more and more electricity.
The financial gymnastics it
Danny East ChopThe financial gymnastics it takes to justify these projects still doesn’t account for our kids having to clean up an enormous mess of rusted metal & defunct power lines. What kind of legacy are we leaving?
Thank you, Chris Mara, for
Carol formerly ChilmarkThank you, Chris Mara, for your excellent comment. I'll add (as a former large utility finance professional) that all should remember the basic economic concepts of supply and demand - with greater supply (of electricity, from wind turbines), the price per kwh declines. When one considers that wind (and solar) require no fuel and almost no staff once they are operational, it should be obvious why they are the cheapest source of electricity.
Also, people who live (or just have homes) on an island may wish to consider the threat to their real estate, perhaps even lives, from sea level rise and stronger storms due to a warmer North Atlantic - the Gulf of Maine is the fastest-warming patch of ocean in the world.
Actually, they had to provide
Chris EdgartownActually, they had to provide a bond for the replacement and removal of every one of the turbines.
False, Vineyard Wind did not
Michael EdgartownFalse, Vineyard Wind did not pay a bond for each turbine. Instead, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued Vineyard Wind a waiver for the standard financial assurance, which is typically a decommissioning bond. When people say this was 'rammed through' by the prior administration, this is one of the many things they are talking about- A total disregard for anything but opening up the funding and cutting the checks.
Actually they were allowed to
Chris EdgartownActually they were allowed to provide the bond over time.
God bless President Trump for
Metacom AquinnahGod bless President Trump for stopping this abomination.
Trumps revenge tour alive and
Ken Edg.Trumps revenge tour alive and well. Crazy times we live in.
Hopefully they can shut down
Lisa EdgHopefully they can shut down Vineyard Wind too. The flashing red lights destroy the natural view.
as will rising ocean levels.
michael chilmarkas will rising ocean levels.
The oil and gas industry is
JRE ColoradoThe oil and gas industry is now getting a return on its millions of dollars in campaign contributions to the Trump presidential campaign....
Great news!! Hopefully we can
Bob EdgartownGreat news!! Hopefully we can get rid of the ones of south beach…
Our electric bills are out of control, because we have to pay for these things…
The cost of your electric
Chris EdgartownThe cost of your electric bill isn't because of "these things". It's because the electric company has to buy power from farther and farther places to maintain the load and provide enough power for the growing demand.
The environmental care
A. F. Cook EarthThe environmental care movement may be allowing itself to be unwittingly divided and conquered on the wind-farm issue. A a vast network of fossil-fuel interests and donors has been unmasked by Brown University's Climate Research Lab, whose report identifying misinformation about wind power and renewables generally has drawn apparent legal threats from the climate-change denial lobby that may try to attack the university's funding for their work. Truth scares the people who don't want the public to know it; and they are very good at convincing some otherwise well meaning environmental defenders to become renewable energy skeptics: they are THAT good at what they do! Vett the people who've persuaded you to shack up with them politically ... if you dare to go into this issue with blinders off.
NYT headline:
"Law Firm Pressures Brown University to Erase Research on Anti-Wind Groups"
The firm, which represents opponents of offshore wind, said it would complain to Brown’s federal and private funding sources.
Thanks A.F. Two years ago
Steve ChilmarkThanks A.F. Two years ago Politico had a decent follow-the-money article with the headline "The 'very liberal' doctor, the pro-GOP car dealer and the movement against offshore wind". The goal of the astro-turf organizations has been to tie up offshore wind in court hoping to kill or at least delay it.
They have finally found an administration that opposes wind power and not for an environmental reason, but because of fear of what may happen to their real estate.
What will happen to the now
Alec Walsh ChilmarkWhat will happen to the now idle wind turbines? Is there a plan to remove them, and at whose cost?
Who is paying for cost of
Albert GosnoldWho is paying for cost of removing Plymouth?
The consumer?
The earth is warming……and has
Jim MVThe earth is warming……and has always been. This cycle will continue until the next ice age. It has happened before and will happen again.
The loud voices want us to believe that there is a one to one connection between power plants and global warming. There isn’t! The Oceans and Land masses dwarf man’s CO2 contribution and always have.
Windmills are a symptom of the problem not a solution. The problem is the hatred of oil by some people. The haters are now being exposed so that the rest of us can see this game for what it is…….
I wonder why windmills that will only make power for RI and Ct is a story in this paper?
Why do we care? Our governor ruined our view for no benefit…….hmmmm…….
This is misleading. The Earth
Ann ChilmarkThis is misleading. The Earth has never been forced to warm so rapidly. Human activity (primarily using fossil fuels) is driving climate change at an unprecedented rate, which is far too fast for many species to adapt, including humans. This rapid climate change is driving the sixth extinction, and judging from the paleontological record, this is a devastating event we may not survive. We are fully capable of ruining the planet and all its creatures in record time. I miss the pristine view, too, but we need to wake up and face the fact that climate change is real and an existential threat. This isn't about hating oil, but about fearing the results of an experiment with our atmosphere that is out of control-and in which we are are the lab rats. We need to do everything possible to slow climate change.
Martha’s Vineyard itself is
James EdgartownMartha’s Vineyard itself is younger than the vast number of species you describe as under threat of extinction “in record time”. Extinction events vary, some as quick as a meteor and others as slow as planetary glaciation. This island will be gone much sooner than any extinction events from the current global warming trends. This should give readers some idea of the relative time scales and our hubris in thinking we are active players in the causes or outcomes. We are along for the ride, just like the glacial materials were 23,000 years ago. Enjoy it while it lasts!
Jim, we already have had an
Ann ChilmarkJim, we already have had an exceptional loss of species in the past century due to human activity and, now, climate change. See this:
"Even under our assumptions, which would tend to minimize evidence of an incipient mass extinction, the average rate of vertebrate species loss over the last century is up to 100 times higher than the background rate."
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.1400253
“Richard Blumenthal was
John Aldeborgh Katama“Richard Blumenthal was critical of the decision to shut down construction, saying it comes as residents’ electric bills are skyrocketing.” It looks like Richard Blumenthal needs to do some more research, off shore wind is not even close to the most affordable energy option and looking forward this gap will only widen, as well as bringing with it a range of unintended consequences.
Solar, with battery storage, remains a far better option for two major economic reasons. First, just like semiconductors, it’s becoming steadily less costly to build out and secondly, it’s almost infinitely granular when scaling, so capacity can be added rapidly and in any increment.
Battery costs are plummeting as new technologies are reaching maturity, sodium batteries are 1/10th the cost of lithium ion batteries and don’t require rare earth metals, with far less risk of fire. As size and weight aren’t material concerns for mass storage this becomes one of a number of attractive options for renewables.
Off shore wind has been like pushing a rock uphill since this project was first announced. It’s never made sense economically and is decades behind schedule. If the utility companies were allowed to select the most cost effective options for generating electricity, off shore wind would never make the list. Worse, there are no practical ways to reduce the massive capital investment or decades long construction timeline required to build out an off shore wind project. This has always been a solution looking for a problem.
Solar would be a good option
Chris EdgartownSolar would be a good option but it needs land and lots of it. Better out west but arround here were land is more scarce not so good.
“Decades long construction
Paul Chilmark“Decades long construction process”? Do you…do you not see Vineyard Wind operating? It’s actually remarkably simple to build a wind farm vs. most other forms of power plants, and the offshore wind resources off the east coast are one of the largest untapped sources of energy on the planet.
And yet MA regulations make
James EdgartownAnd yet MA regulations make it extremely expensive to install home battery systems in conjunction with a sonar array! The MA rules basically are the equivalent of requiring all electric cars to have a concrete enclosure around the battery. Ludicrous big government rules that put a damper on an easy green home renovation. Instead, the rules promote cheaper propane generators as an energy backup source over batteries. It does not make sense.
Does anyone know if
Ann ChilmarkDoes anyone know if Revolution Wind had to put up a bond for the replacement and/or removal of its windmills when they reach the end of their lifespan? Also, has anyone been working to convince them to synch their flashing red lights so they only flash when an aircraft or boat or other object is within range, as has bene promised by MV Wind? I support wind and other alternative energy sources to lessen the very real and terrible impact of fossil fuels driving climate change and do not support Trump's 11th hour order.
But there are ways to make this better. The negative impact of building a wind farm with a constellation of flashing red lights that looks like a refinery/industrial complex in a pristine landscape was minimized (we were told they would barely be visible). At 12 miles offshore, these windmills, each 3x the height of the statue of Liberty, are super visible and this has created a backlash against a good clean technology. They should have been moved farther out on the continental shelf, which extends much farther to the south and east, especially out of respect for the Wampanoag and residents of MV, who are not getting this energy that will go to RI and CT. We missed the opportunity for a compromise where we could have our energy and unspoiled view too. But now that they are built, we need to make sure the lights are turning on only when necessary (activiated by radar) and that the wind mills will be removed at the end of their lifetimes so future generations (and the birds and other wildlife that are netaively impacted) won't be stuck with rusting hulks like so many oil rigs off the US coast.
The Revolution Wind removal
Albert GosnoldThe Revolution Wind removal bond is that same as for Plymouth Nuclear.
Do you see the flashing red lights on every oil drilling/production platform and nuclear cooing towers?
Wind turbines flash red lights as required by law, just like the Island's radio towers.
MVY Airport is a flashing sea of rainbow colors.
Our pristine Island waters are beginning to look like Trump's Gulf of America.
Birds and other wildlife - refineries.
Being that Orsted is a Danish
gina Menemsha/nycBeing that Orsted is a Danish Company I'm sure the work stoppage was more a WH order based on Trumps Greenland Denmark feud..& not based on any of the Science involved .. The Trump Administration isn't known for evaluating any type of real data..
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