A federal judge on Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would probably kill the project in a matter of days.
District judge Carl J Nichols, an appointee of Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.
Norwegian company Equinor owns Empire Wind. Spokesperson David Schoetz said they welcomed the court’s decision and would continue to work in collaboration with authorities. It is the second developer to prevail in court against the administration this week.
The Trump administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the east coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Trump has targeted offshore wind from his first days back in the White House, most recently calling windfarms “losers” that lose money, destroy the landscape and kill birds.