Trump Halts $1.5B Revolution Wind Project; Lamont Vows To Fight For Offshore Energy Future

CONNECTICUT — Despite President Donald Trump plucking the wind from the sails of a high-profile clean energy project, Gov. Ned Lamont has vowed to stay the course.

Late on Friday, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a StopWork order on the nearly completed $1.5 billion Revolution Wind Project, a 704‑megawatt offshore wind farm sited about 32 miles from Connecticut, and 15 miles off the Rhode Island coast. The installation, a partnership between Ørsted and Skyborn Renewables, was intended to power over 350,000 homes across both states.

Shares in Ørsted, the world's biggest offshore wind farm developer, plummeted 17 percent Monday morning.

Lamont called the hammer-drop by the Trump administration "political," and said it would drive up the cost of electricity bills.

"It wastes years of state investment in renewable energy designed to diversify our energy supply and lower costs for families and businesses," the governor said in a statement released over the weekend.

"We are working closely with Rhode Island to save this project because it represents exactly the kind of investment that reduces energy costs, strengthens regional production, and builds a more secure energy future – the very goals President Trump claims to support but undermines with this decision."

Trump cited unspecified national‑security concerns and potential interference with other uses of federal waters for the decision. But the President has made no secret of his distaste for wind energy initiatives. Last week on Truth Social, Trump railed that "STUPID AND UGLY WINDMILLS ARE KILLING NEW JERSEY. Energy prices up 28% this year, and not enough electricity to take care of state." During his trip to Scotland last month, Trump urged European allies to "stop the windmills."

Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee said the shuttering of Revolution Wind puts hundreds of union jobs at risk.

"At a time when we should be moving forward with solutions for energy, jobs, and affordability, this administration is choosing delay and disruption," McKee said, calling the project "key to Rhode Island’s economic development, energy security, and long-term affordability … We are working with our partners in Connecticut to pursue every avenue to reverse this decision."

Issuing a StopWork for the Revolution Wind Project is BOEM's second major flex this year, after halting operations at the Empire Wind 1 project off New York in April. Ops resumed a month later following diplomatic efforts by Norway's government, Reuters reported.