German energy company RWE has said it will abandon its offshore wind projects in the US after reaching a $1.2bn (\u00a3892m) payout deal with President Donald Trump's Department of the Interior (DoI).<\/p>\n
RWE said that it will now reinvest the sum into conventional gas projects, including $900m (\u00a3669m) in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal project in Louisiana.<\/p>\n
"After careful consideration, it was determined there is no path forward to permit these projects in the US for the foreseeable future," the company said in a statement.<\/p>\n
RWE said it has agreed to relinquish its leases off the California and Louisiana coasts as well as in the New York Bight.<\/p>\n
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Overall, the German firm plans to invest approximately \u20ac17bn (\u00a314.5bn; $19.6bn) in the US over the next six years "to grow its generation capacity".<\/p>\n
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement posted on X that Americans deserve an energy system built on common sense and not one dependent on "costly subsidies".<\/p>\n
"We welcome RWE's agreement and voluntary investment in projects that strengthen our nation's energy security," he added.<\/p>\n
The deal is the latest the Trump administration has reached this year as Trump, a vocal supporter of the fossil fuel industry, continues his push to halt offshore wind projects.<\/p>\n
Trump has sought to boost government support for fossil fuels after campaigning for the presidency under the slogan "drill, baby, drill".<\/p>\n
Days after his return to office, he said "we're not going to do the wind thing" and called them "big, ugly windmills" that were dangerous to wildlife.<\/p>\n
In March 2026, the DoI reached a deal with TotalEnergies putting an end to the French company's offshore wind projects in the US.<\/p>\n
Instead, the firm agreed to reroute investment to build a LNG plant in Texas and to develop "upstream conventional oil" in the Gulf of Mexico.<\/p>\n
The administration signed a similar $129bn (\u00a396bn) agreement with Charlotte-based Duke Energy last month in exchange for the termination of the company's offshore wind lease in the Carolina Long Bay area.<\/p>\n