Another offshore wind company cancels Morro Bay project in deal with Trump
Another offshore wind company has canceled its plans to deploy turbines off Morro Bay.
Invenergy, which owns the Even Keel Wind project, agreed to end its lease in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area, the company announced on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Invenergy will terminate its three other offshore wind projects in the New York Bight and the Gulf of Maine, and instead redirect $765 million from those projects to other domestic energy sources, the U.S. Department of Interior said in a news release.
As part of the deal, Invenergy can recover "partial reimbursement” for those leases, the news release said without disclosing the amount.
Now, Invenergy will instead invest in domestic natural gas-fired projects in Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri and geothermal power generation projects in the western United States, the company said in a news release.
“At a time of unprecedented energy demand, Invenergy is focused on delivering reliable, affordable energy for our customers and supporting disciplined investment at scale,” Invenergy senior vice president of development Daniel Runyan said. “That is why Invenergy, with our affiliates and on behalf of our various stakeholders, will deploy additional capital into projects that can be delivered on a commercially reasonable timeline and meet customer demand while continuing to evaluate opportunities as market conditions evolve.”
In April, the U.S. Department of Interior offered a total of $885 million to two other offshore wind companies — Golden State Wind on the West Coast and Bluepoint Wind on the East Coast — to terminate their leases. Both accepted.
Now, there’s only one leaseholder remaining in Morro Bay: Equinor.
“President Trump is committed to unleashing affordable, reliable American energy for our country’s communities and putting the American people first through common-sense action,” Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said in a news release on Wednesday. “The offshore wind leases were sold under the assumptions that taxpayers would indefinitely subsidize costly, unreliable projects and that no national security concerns were implicated — both assumptions have since been proven false.
“Under President Trump, companies are shifting investment back toward dependable, secure energy infrastructure that can power our economy and lower utility costs,” he added. “We applaud Invenergy for recognizing the importance of baseload power and investing in energy solutions that deliver real benefits to American consumers.”
U.S. Senator Adam Schiff, however, condemned the decision.
“As Americans pay more and more for energy, the Trump administration is once again paying millions in taxpayer dollars to kill California energy projects,” he said in a statement. “Expect another hike in your utility bills, courtesy of Donald Trump. And another win for the oil industry.”
