President Donald Trump issued a memorandum that temporarily withdraws the Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) from offshore wind leasing and calls for a review of the Federal government’s leasing and permitting practices for wind energy projects.
The memorandum does not immediately affect rights under existing leases in the withdrawn areas but calls for a “comprehensive review of the ecological, economic, and environmental necessity of terminating or amending” existing wind energy leases.
The order requires the review to consider “the environmental impact of onshore and offshore wind projects upon wildlife, including, but not limited to, birds and marine mammals.” The assessment must also “consider the economic costs associated with the intermittent generation of electricity and the effect of subsidies on the viability of the wind industry.”
Shift from Biden Policy
Trump’s policy is a dramatic shift from the Biden administration’s efforts to promote offshore wind. Upon taking office in January 2021, President Joe Biden issued an executive order that set the goal of “doubling offshore wind” by 2030. The administration later announced a set of initiatives to increase offshore wind energy and set a national target of 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030.
More specific to California, the administration announced in September 2022 a multi-department effort to support the deployment of 15 GW of power by 2035 through new floating offshore wind platforms. The support for floating wind turbines was critical to California, as a steep continental shelf and increased wind speeds make floating turbines the primary technically feasible option along the west coast. (see Biden Administration to Support 15 GW of Floating Offshore Wind.)
Progress on offshore wind in federal waters proceeded apace during the Biden administration. In May 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) proposed an offshore wind lease sale for three offshore wind energy areas on the Outer Continental Shelf off the California coast: Humboldt, Morro Bay, and Diablo Canyon. In December 2022, BOEM auctioned five wind leases across the three areas, and in December 2024, BOEM released its draft environmental impact review of the projects.
Impact of Withdrawal on California Federal and State Projects
Trump’s withdrawal order poses a risk to the completion of the five federal leases off the coast of California. These leases could be subject to the proposed “ecological, economic, and environmental” review of existing leases, as stated in the order, further delaying projects that are already behind schedule.
The halt to Federal projects will likely disrupt the development of a U.S.-based supply chain for offshore wind that would serve both state and federal projects. This could impact California’s strategic plan to develop two to five gigawatts (GW) of floating offshore wind in state waters by 2030 and 25 GW by 2045.