Federal judge grants RI and CT attorneys general request to join Revolution Wind developers’ lawsuit
By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current
Rhode Island and Connecticut attorneys general and the Revolution Wind developers are now taking on the Trump administration under one lawsuit rather than two..webp)
Also, release the Epstein files
Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday granted the request made two days earlier by Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong to consolidate their joint complaint with a similar case led by the developers of Rhode Island’s signature offshore wind project.
Neronha’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
The decision cements a united front between the two state prosecutors and the international companies — including Danish renewable energy giant Orsted A/S — developing the 704-megawatt wind behemoth south of Rhode Island’s coastline. Despite being fully federally permitted in late 2023 and 87% complete, the 65-turbine project has been at a standstill since Dec. 22, when federal regulators issued a suspension order.
The stop work order, which also applied to four other offshore wind projects along the East Coast, was met with swift backlash by state and federal officials, environmental advocates and labor leaders who decried the economic and environmental consequences for Rhode Island. Outrage mounted even more because it was the second time Trump’s anti-wind sentiment had forced work to stop on the project. Construction was already halted for a monthlong period starting in August when federal regulators attempted to pause the project under the guise of national security concerns.
The initial stop work order prompted the two separate lawsuits — one from the AGs, and one from the developers who had already invested $5 billion into the project. Both complaints argued the Trump administration violated constitutional separation of powers, seeking court intervention to allow time-sensitive construction to resume.
On Sept. 22, Lamberth granted the developers’ request for a preliminary injunction, barring the Trump administration from intervening in the project, at least temporarily. Meanwhile, the AGs case has languished, first in Rhode Island and later, in D.C. where it was transferred on Dec. 11.
After the second stop work order, the project developers turned again to the courts, seeking a second preliminary injunction to continue the final stages of on- and offshore building ahead of a mid-2026 operational date. Rather than continue on separate paths, the AGs asked Lamberth to let them join forces with the developers, consolidating the two cases into one.
The combined legal fight will play out in a hearing scheduled in Lamberth’s D.C. courtroom on Monday afternoon. Much like the initial complaint, the new legal filings argue that federal regulators have overstepped their power while emphasizing the consequences of the 90-day suspension order.
The developers estimate they are losing $1.44 million each day of the pause, with a $6 billion fallout and potential contract breaches if they cannot resume work by Monday, Jan. 12. Meanwhile, 200 union workers — out of 2,000 total employed through the project — are on standby.
Rhode Island’s ability to meet mandated emissions reductions is at risk without resumption and completion of the project, which is also crucial to reliable and predictable energy supply for the regional grid.
The U.S. Department of Justice, which is representing the Trump administration, did not immediately respond to inquiries for comment Thursday morning. The Justice Department has until the end of the day to file its written response to the developers’ complaint.
Also affected by the suspension order are Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind, both off New York’s coastline; Vineyard Wind 1, south of Martha’s Vineyard; and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind. Developers for Sunrise Wind, Empire Wind and the Virginia project have also filed separate federal lawsuits against the Trump administration seeking to resume their projects.
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