The U.S. Department of the Interior has announced a pause on leases for five major offshore wind projects currently under construction, citing national security concerns identified in recently completed classified reports by the Department of War. The Interior Department said the pause will allow federal agencies, including the Department of War, to work with leaseholders and state partners to explore ways to mitigate these risks.
“The primary duty of the United States government is to protect its citizens,” said Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. “This action addresses emerging national security risks, including advances in adversary technologies and vulnerabilities created by large offshore wind projects near our East Coast population centers. The Trump administration will always prioritize American security.”
The leases on Vineyard Wind 1 (OCS-A 0501), Revolution Wind (OCS-A 0486), CVOW – Commercial (OCS-A 0483), Sunrise Wind (OCS-A 0487), and Empire Wind 1 (OCS-A 0512) are now paused.
Unclassified U.S. government reports have long noted that offshore wind turbines can create radar “clutter,” as the movement of large blades and reflective towers interferes with radar detection, obscuring legitimate targets and generating false readings. A 2024 Department of Energy report noted that increasing radar detection thresholds can reduce some clutter but may cause actual targets to be missed.
On X, Burgum criticized offshore wind as “an expensive, unreliable, subsidy-dependent scheme,” arguing that the Trump administration prefers energy projects like coal and U.S. natural gas that are more dependable. He added that electricity from the five paused offshore wind projects is on average 75% more expensive than already high East Coast grid prices, and that in New England, offshore wind can cost nearly 12 times more than natural gas.
In September 2025, President Donald Trump sharply criticized climate science during a UN General Assembly address, calling climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world” and dismissing the concept of a carbon footprint as a hoax. He accused unnamed groups of having “evil intentions” in promoting renewable energy.
