US Government: Almost a billion US dollars for abandoning offshore wind energy
TotalEnergies receives money back that the company paid for the right to build two offshore wind projects. This is to be channeled into gas projects.
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The US government is paying TotalEnergies almost a billion US dollars to abandon two projects for the construction of wind turbines off the US East Coast and to build natural gas infrastructure instead. This was announced by the US Department of the Interior and TotalEnergies. The administration of US President Donald Trump is thus continuing to work to end the promotion of climate-friendly energy generation. TotalEnergies, in turn, claims that its studies have shown that the development of offshore wind energy in the USA – “unlike in Europe” – is expensive and “could negatively impact the affordability of electricity for US consumers”.
Trump vs. Renewables
TotalEnergies was awarded the contract to develop the two offshore projects in 2022. For 133 million US dollars, the company secured the rights to build on an area 35 km off the coast of North Carolina (“Carolina Long Bay”) and, for 795 million dollars, 87 km off New Jersey (“New York Bight”). The latter was intended to supply about 3 gigawatts of clean electricity from 2028, enough for around one million households. The Trump administration had recently failed multiple times in court with attempts to stop such projects; the repayment to TotalEnergies is now part of a strategic shift. In return, the company has pledged to build infrastructure to supply Europe with liquefied gas from the USA.
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US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum now describes the agreement as “another success for President Trump's commitment to affordable and reliable energy.” He stated that offshore wind energy is “one of the most expensive, unreliable, environmentally damaging, and subsidy-dependent projects ever forced upon American electricity customers and taxpayers.” In Germany, the costs for the erection and operation of wind turbines are similarly low as for solar systems and significantly lower than for all fossil fuels, including gas, determined the Fraunhofer ISE in 2024. In the USA, the calculation is somewhat more complicated; show data from the investment bank Lazard.
(mho)
