New York wind farm construction can proceed after judge lifts Trump suspension

Work on a major offshore wind project in New York can continue after a federal judge temporarily lifted the Trump administration’s suspension of the undertaking — finding that the project faced serious harm if the halt remained in place.US District Judge Carl Nichols issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of a Dec.22 stop-work order from the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which had cited national security concerns in halting construction of the offshore wind farm, known as Empire Wind.The Thursday ruling clears the way for Equinor, the Norwegian energy company behind the project, to restart offshore construction after work was halted amid a broader administration review of five East Coast wind developments.Nichols said Empire Wind had showed an injunction risked sinking the project completely.The project’s backers “established on this record that losing access to specialized vessels that cannot be replaced in time to meet binding deadlines, will not just cause substantial financial loss, but it will threaten Empire Wind’s entire existence,” the judge stated.“Damocles’s sword does not have to actually fall on the movant before the court will issue an injunction” in order to prevent irreparable harm,” he added.President Trump, a Republican, has long blasted wind as “the worst form of energy,” seeking to slam the brakes on the sector while prioritizing oil, natural gas, coal, nuclear energy and more.The Post has sought comment from the Interior Department.“Empire Wind will now focus on safely restarting construction activities that were halted during the suspension period,” the company said in a press release.“In addition, the project will continue to engage with the US government to ensure the safe, secure and responsible execution of its operations.Gov.

Kathy Hochul welcomed the judge’s decision — and slammed the feds’ rationale for issuing the stop-work order in the first place.“They we...