<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/corruption-plain-and-simple-trump-orders-halt-of-nearly-finished-offshore-wind-farm-citing-security/>
"The Trump administration, citing supposed but unnamed “national security
interests”, have halted construction of the 704-megawatt (MW) Revolution Wind
offshore wind farm that is already 80 per cent complete.
The decision has stunned the renewable energy industry, coming as it does amid
multi-prong attacks from the Trump Administration, which has filled key
leadership positions in the energy and environmental departments with fossil
fuel lobbyists who are systematically tearing existing legislation apart.
Construction of the Revolution Wind project, owned by the Danish government
controlled Ørsted, began in May, 2024, and according to the owner is 80 per
cent complete, with 45 out of the 65 wind turbines now fully installed.
In a letter sent last week to Ørsted by Matthew Giacona, the acting director of
the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and a former fossil fuel lobbyist,
the company was told to “halt all ongoing activities related to the Revolution
Wind Project on the outer continental shelf”.
According to Giacona, the reason for the construction halt was “to allow time
for [the BOEM] to address concerns that have arisen” during the review of all
offshore wind projects that Donald Trump ordered earlier this year.
Part of a raft of executive orders Donald Trump signed in the early days of his
second presidency, the order initiated a temporary withdrawal of all leases on
the outer continental shelf, including future and existing offshore wind
leases, and initiated a review of existing leases.
Giacona did not specify what those “concerns” were, saying only that the BOEM
was acting to ensure that all activities on the outer continental shelf were
carried out “in a manner that provides for protection of the environment” and
“In particular, BOEM is seeking to address concerns related to the protection
of national security interests”.
What those national security interests could possibly be were not addressed.
Trump has vowed that “no new windmills” will be built on his watch and has
simultaneously called for increased drilling for oil and gas.
This includes a plan announced last week by the DoI to hold more than 30
offshore oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska’s Cook Inlet
over the next 15 years – as well as a potentially catastrophic effort to begin
trawling the seabed for critical minerals and resources."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
