Equinor, a Norwegian company, will stop offshore construction on its Empire Wind I in New York State following an order to cease work from the U.S. The company announced on Thursday that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum had issued a stop-work order.

The unexpected order is a blow to the company, and to the fledgling offshore wind industry in the United States. This industry previously received substantial support from former President Joe Biden as part of his plan to decarbonise power grids and combat climate changes.

Equinor spokesperson: "We've decided to stop the offshore construction project after the order."

She added, "We will investigate with the administration why the order was given after we received all permits previously."

Equinor refused to comment on potential implications for the project moving forward. However, it said that the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal would be built, which is a facility dedicated offshore wind operations and maintenance.

The Interior Department's decision is a result of a review that was ordered by President Donald Trump on his first official day in office, in January.

The Interior Department did not reply to our request for further comment.

Equinor has already invested around $2 billion in the Empire Wind Project, which was approved by Biden administration November 2023. Construction began last year.

The 810 megawatts of power generated by the project could be used to power 700,000. It was scheduled to start operating in 2027. (Reporting and editing by EssiLehto, Joe Bavier and NerijusAdomaitis)

(source: Reuters)