DOJ Asks Court to Remand Revolution Wind Offshore Permit for Reassessment, Testing Bipartisan Permitting Deal
OFF RHODE ISLAND — The U.S. Department of Justice asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on October 9 to remand the Interior Department's November 2023 approval of the Revolution Wind offshore wind project's construction and operations plan (COP) back to the agency, so it can reevaluate whether the approval complies with the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. In the filing, the Justice Department said Interior agrees a remand is warranted, faulting the original approval for failing to adequately explain the project's potential "moderate to major adverse impacts" on other uses of the area, such as fishing and recreation. According to Bloomberg Law, the government also asked the court to grant the plaintiffs summary judgment on their claims against the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The case was filed in January 2024 by Green Oceans, a Rhode Island-based group that also challenged the federal approvals of Revolution Wind and South Fork Wind; it is before U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth. Revolution Wind, located off the coasts of Rhode Island and Connecticut, is a 704-megawatt project developed as a 50-50 joint venture between Denmark's Orsted and Skyborn Renewables, owned by Global Infrastructure Partners, with a total investment of about $6.2 billion and 65 turbines. The project began delivering power to the New England grid on March 14, and Orsted confirmed on September 17 that the final turbine had been installed. Once fully operational, it is expected to supply electricity to more than 350,000 homes and businesses in Rhode Island and Connecticut.
It is the third time the Trump administration has moved against the project. In August 2025, Interior ordered work stopped when the project was about 80 percent complete; Judge Lamberth later issued a preliminary injunction and construction resumed. In December 2025, Interior suspended five offshore wind projects under construction, including Revolution Wind, citing potential turbine interference with radar and national security concerns; a court again issued an injunction in early 2026, and work resumed in January.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Senator Martin Heinrich, the top Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, responded in a joint statement: "Frankly, we need to get permitting certainty in law, and this proves it. In the meantime, the administration needs to start showing good faith progress on wind permits." An Interior Department spokesperson said the filing merely complies with a court briefing schedule and does not announce a policy change, adding that the department's position has remained consistent throughout this administration and should not be misconstrued as a shift in its approach to offshore wind. Jarrod Agen, executive director of the White House National Energy Dominance Council, said on social media that the lawsuit is an old case brought by the local community against the Biden administration, that the White House still supports permitting reform, and that he looks forward to a Senate vote on the legislation. Orsted declined to comment on Tuesday.
The filing comes weeks after a bipartisan permitting reform deal was reached in late September. The agreement included assurances that the administration would stop blocking some fully permitted wind and solar projects from moving ahead, with a vote on the legislation expected after the November midterm elections. Industry observers say the remand request does not immediately affect the project's operations, but the legal process could stretch into early next year and raises questions about whether the deal will hold. (Sources: Bloomberg/Bloomberg Law, The Hill and Canary Media reporting on the October 9 court filing and statements by the parties.)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Revolution Wind海上风电项目部件在康涅狄格州新伦敦州立码头集结（2025年8月）。摄影：4300streetcar，CC BY 4.0，来源：Wikimedia Commons
