Judge rules Massachusetts offshore wind project halted by Trump administration can continue

Federal Judge Allows Massachusetts Offshore Wind Project to Continue Despite Trump Administration Freeze

A federal judge in Boston ruled Tuesday that the nearly completed Vineyard Wind project can proceed with construction, dealing another blow to the Trump administration’s attempt to halt major East Coast offshore wind developments on national security grounds.

Judge Brian Murphy suspended the administration’s stop-work order for the Massachusetts project, citing potential economic losses from delays and the developers’ likelihood of success on their legal claims. The decision makes Vineyard Wind the fourth of five major offshore wind projects that courts have allowed to continue after the administration froze them days before Christmas.

“Vineyard Wind will focus on working in coordination with its contractors, the federal government, and other relevant stakeholders and authorities to safely restart activities,” company spokesperson Craig Gilvarg said in a statement.

The Massachusetts project, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, is located 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. Already 95% complete and partially operational, the development currently produces nearly 600 megawatts of power for the New England electric grid. Before the pause, Vineyard Wind was on track for completion by late March, with 62 turbines generating 800 megawatts—enough clean electricity to power approximately 400,000 homes.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell emphasized the project’s importance, stating it is “essential to ensuring the state can lower costs, meet rising energy demand, advance its climate goals and sustain thousands of good-paying jobs.”

The ruling follows similar decisions by federal judges who previously allowed three other major projects to restart: Revolution Wind (for Rhode Island and Connecticut, developed by Danish company Orsted), Empire Wind (for New York, by Norwegian company Equinor), and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (by Dominion Energy Virginia). Only Orsted’s Sunrise Wind project for New York remains paused, with legal proceedings still pending.

Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond Law School professor tracking the lawsuits, noted that judges have consistently determined the government failed to demonstrate an imminent national security risk warranting construction halts.

U.S. Senator Edward Markey (D-Massachusetts) welcomed the judge’s decision, calling it “an important step in the process to fight back against the Trump administration’s lawless attacks against our union jobs, grid security, and energy affordability.”

The administration has been vague about its specific national security concerns. Court documents show Matthew Giacona, acting director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), reviewed classified documents in November discussing potential impacts to early warning monitoring and radar systems from offshore wind projects. Giacona determined Vineyard Wind’s ongoing activities did not “adequately provide for the protection of national security interests” without mitigation measures, though he was “not aware of any measures that would mitigate the national security risks.”

Given Vineyard Wind’s advanced construction status, BOEM had allowed partial operations during the suspension while consulting with defense officials and project owners.

President Trump has repeatedly criticized offshore wind energy since returning to the White House, describing wind farms as “losers” that lose money, destroy landscapes, and kill birds. His administration’s skepticism contrasts with research from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory showing states with substantial utility-scale wind and solar often enjoy low electricity prices, though some implementing mandatory renewable energy programs have experienced price increases.

The Vineyard Wind project faced additional controversy after fiberglass fragments from a broken turbine blade washed onto Nantucket beaches in July 2024 during peak tourist season. Manufacturer GE Vernova agreed to pay $10.5 million to compensate affected island businesses.

White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers has defended the construction pause as necessary to protect national security, while Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose family famously opposed an earlier wind project near their Cape Cod estate, has specifically criticized Vineyard Wind.

The court’s decision represents a significant victory for the offshore wind industry and renewable energy advocates as legal battles over the administration’s energy policies continue to unfold.