TotalEnergies has accepted $1 billion to abandon offshore wind leases in the US and re-focus on oil and gas, a US government announcement has confirmed.
The company has also agreed ‘not to develop any new offshore wind projects in the United States’.
Offshore wind leases off New York and Carolinas are set to be cancelled, with the government reimbursing TotalEnergies for what it has already paid out.
“Under this innovative agreement driven by President Donald J. Trump’s Energy Dominance Agenda, the American people will no longer pay for ideological subsidies that benefited only the unreliable and costly offshore wind industry,” the Department of the Interior said.
“The Department of the Interior has announced a landmark agreement with TotalEnergies for the company to redirect capital from expensive, unreliable offshore wind leases toward affordable, reliable natural gas projects that will provide secure energy for hardworking Americans.
“TotalEnergies has committed to invest approximately $1 billion – the value of its renounced offshore wind leases – in oil and natural gas and LNG production in the United States. Following their new investment, the United States will reimburse the company dollar-for-dollar, up to the amount they paid in lease purchases for offshore wind.”
TotalEnergies is believed to have around 23GW of offshore wind projects in the pipeline that are not yet built, although the company has not confirmed the figure. It does have two operational wind farms, one in Taiwan (Yunlin) that it will operate but does not wholly own, and one in the UK (Seagreen), which has been running since 2023.
“Considering that the development of offshore wind projects is not in the country’s interest, we have decided to renounce offshore wind development in the United States, in exchange for the reimbursement of the lease fees,” said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of TotalEnergies. “Furthermore, these agreements, under which we will reinvest the refunded lease fees to finance the construction of the 29 Mt Rio Grande LNG plant and the development of our oil and gas activities, allows us to support the development of US gas production and export.
“These investments will contribute to supplying Europe with much-needed LNG from the US and provide gas for US data center development. We believe this is a more efficient use of capital in the United States.”
In September last year, TotalEnergies joined RWE in winning the Centre Manche 2 tender to design, build and operate a 1.5GW site off the coast of Normandy in the English Channel. This would be the largest renewable energy project in France, it says.
Oceantic reaction
The Oceantic Network, a proponent for offshore wind, called the deal between the government and TotalEnergies ‘political theater’.
“After failing to shut down offshore wind through strong-arm tactics and litigation losses, the administration is now spending $1 billion in taxpayer dollars to force developers out of the market – wrapped in a false narrative about affordability, reliability, and national security,” said SVP of Policy & Market Affairs Sam Salustro.
“Winter Storm Fern showed how offshore wind helps keep the lights on and rates down for millions in the Northeast. And while security claims have been reviewed and dismissed by multiple federal judges, the Department of the Interior and Department of Defense have repeatedly signed off on projects well before construction began.
“Offshore wind’s long-term trajectory remains secure in the US as states continue to make the power source a foundational part of their energy mixture that creates good-paying local jobs. This is political theater meant to obscure the fact that offshore wind capacity is being pulled out of the pipeline when energy prices are skyrocketing, even as other offshore wind projects continue delivering reliable and affordable power to the grid.
“Paying to remove affordable, homegrown energy out of the equation leaves American consumers struggling to pay their electricity bills.”
“This agreement is yet another win for President Trump’s commitment to affordable and reliable energy for all Americans,” said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum.
“Offshore wind is one of the most expensive, unreliable, environmentally disruptive, and subsidy-dependent schemes ever forced on American ratepayers and taxpayers. We welcome TotalEnergies’ commitment to developing projects that produce dependable, affordable power to lower Americans’ monthly bills while providing secure U.S. baseload power today—and in the future.”
With courts in February overturning all five of the US administration’s stop work orders on offshore wind, it seems the Trump government has found another way to bring a halt to the sector.
