In a recent development, following President Trump’s public opposition to wind power, a French energy company based in Paris, TotalEnergies SE, has decided to “pause” its $4.4 billion offshore wind project along the coast of New York after his re-election earlier this month. The company is preparing to reconsider the project after Trump’s four-year term.
According to various reports from Bloomberg and other media outlets, during an energy industry conference held in London on Tuesday, November 27, the CEO of TotalEnergies SE, Patrick Pouyanne, announced, “With Trump’s return, I have decided to pause the offshore wind power project.”
This move reflects the incoming US administration’s stance on investing in renewable energy. During his presidential campaign, Trump frequently criticized wind power, vowing to halt offshore wind turbine farms with an executive order on his “first day” in office. He claimed that wind farms “destroy everything, they are too terrible, the most expensive form of energy in the world, they harm the environment, they kill birds and whales.”
It remains unclear what specific actions Trump will take. However, experts suggest that he may suspend some new offshore wind projects as they require federal approval, while existing projects under construction would not be interfered with.
TotalEnergies SE’s plan aimed to generate 3,000 megawatts of power near the coasts of New Jersey and New York. The company had previously stated that the project is expected to achieve zero emissions in the early 2030s. They won the development rights for the seabed area in a record-breaking bid in 2022, but federal approval for this project is a three-year process.
Pouyanne remarked, “I told my team that we’ll revisit the New York project in four years. The advantage is that we only have to wait for four years.” This decision reflects the uncertainties surrounding the future of renewable energy projects in the United States under the upcoming administration.