TotalEnergies Scraps $1B Wind Projects, Shifts Funds to US Natural Gas
The Trump administration will pay TotalEnergies approximately $928 million to halt development of two offshore wind projects planned off the coasts of North Carolina and New York, with the French energy giant redirecting the funds toward U.S. Natural gas ventures, primarily in Texas. The agreement, announced Monday by the Department of the Interior, effectively refunds TotalEnergies’ investment in the Attentive Energy and Carolina Long Bay projects.
Speaking at CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston, TotalEnergies chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné framed the decision as a pragmatic response to the current political climate. “We can recycle this money … into smarter investments,” Pouyanné said, indicating the company would continue to pursue onshore wind, solar, and battery storage projects in the U.S. But was abandoning further offshore wind development due to its perceived high cost and lack of federal support.
The move aligns with President Trump’s broader campaign against renewable energy sources, particularly offshore wind farms, which he has publicly criticized as unsightly. The administration has repeatedly attempted to halt offshore wind construction, though those efforts have been consistently overturned by federal judges, according to reporting from NPR.
The Interior Department characterized the agreement as “innovative,” asserting that “the American people will no longer pay for ideological subsidies that benefited only the unreliable and costly offshore wind industry.”
TotalEnergies’ reinvestment will focus on bolstering its natural gas portfolio in the U.S., including increased investment in Houston-based NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG project in South Texas, as well as natural gas production in the Gulf of Mexico and shale drilling operations. The company holds a 17% stake in NextDecade and is a significant customer of the Rio Grande LNG project’s future exports. TotalEnergies also owns a portion of Sempra Energy’s Cameron LNG in Louisiana and has invested in Glenfarne’s planned Alaska LNG project.
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, speaking alongside Pouyanné, emphasized the administration’s preference for natural gas as a more “reliable” energy source than “intermittent” wind farms. Burgum attributed the agreement to the elimination of subsidies for wind and solar projects through the “One Considerable Beautiful Bill” approved last year. He stated that TotalEnergies had anticipated continued subsidies and adjusted its strategy accordingly.
Environmental groups have sharply criticized the deal, with Evergreen Action’s executive director Lena Moffitt labeling it a “billion-dollar bribe” designed to undermine clean energy initiatives. Moffitt argued the administration was circumventing legal challenges to its attempts to block wind projects by effectively paying TotalEnergies to withdraw.