Trump pulls plug on Maine's offshore wind project

(The Center Square) — The Trump administration has pulled the plug on a $12.6 million federal grant for the University of Maine to build the nation's first offshore wind turbine research project.

The U.S. Department of Energy recently informed the university that it must stop work on the floating research array — which is partially completed — alleging that Maine failed to comply with the terms of the award for a quarter-scale demonstration of offshore turbines it is developing.

The department said it is "suspending all activity under this award" for 90 days while it conducts a financial review of the project. The letter didn't specify any violation by the university.

In a statement, the university said it is "assessing the federal notice" while considering "the next steps for the project and related Maine contracts and jobs," noting that the project was already partially constructed.

"The University of Maine System maintains it is compliant with all state and federal laws, and the conditions of its federal grants and contracts, a number of which have been recently terminated or suspended," the statement said.

The funding is the latest to be cut from Maine amid an ongoing dispute between Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic Gov. Janet Mills over the state's refusal to abide by the president's order banning transgender athletes from performing in women's and girls’ sports.

Maine has set an ambitious goal of reaching 80% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% by 2050, and the Mills administration said offshore wind power will play a large role.

The state is also part of the Power Up New England initiative — a collaboration with Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont and several utilities — which calls for expanding and upgrading interconnection points for undersea cables that will eventually bring power from offshore wind turbines to the regional grid.

Former President Joe Biden, a Democrat, had aggressively pursued plans by the federal government to add at least 35 gigawatts of offshore wind in the U.S. by 2030, beginning with Vineyard Wind off the southern coast of Massachusetts. He argued the plan will boost the nation's clean energy industry and create jobs.

Last August, the Biden administration gave a green light to the Maine project, which called for installing a dozen floating windmills about 30 miles off the coast in federal waters. Maine has banned offshore wind in state waters.

Trump campaigned on a pledge to do away with offshore wind "on day one" and argues that the floating wind turbines "cause tremendous problems with the fish and the whales" while driving up the cost of energy. He has pushed for increased reliance on natural gas and coal to meet the nation's energy needs. He previously issued an order suspending new leasing for wind projects in federal waters.

Last week, the Trump administration halted work on New York's Empire Wind Project "until further review," citing new information suggesting the Biden administration "rushed through its approval without sufficient analysis."

The Maine and New York projects are among several offshore wind farms under development off the Atlantic coastline that could be impacted by the Trump administration's review of federal leases.