California sues Trump administration over offshore wind lease cancelation

Aug 28 (Reuters) - California on Friday ‌sued the Trump ​administration ​and an offshore wind developer over a deal that canceled a planned project off the state's Central Coast in exchange for a $120 million ‌federal reimbursement and a commitment to invest in fossil fuel projects.

• ⁠California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the northern district of ‌California against the U.S. Department ‌of the Interior and Golden State Wind, arguing the April agreement violated federal law and should be invalidated.

• The state said Interior unlawfully used $120 million in ​taxpayer funds to reimburse Golden State Wind for relinquishing an offshore wind lease it purchased in a 2022 federal auction. Golden State Wind is a ⁠joint venture between Ocean Winds, a partnership between France's ENGIE and Portugal's EDP Renewables, and Reventus Power, a London-based ​offshore wind investment firm.

• Golden State Wind was planning a 2-gigawatt floating offshore wind project off California's central coast and had ​pledged more than $30 million for workforce training, supply-chain ‌development and community benefits, according to the complaint.

• California said the cancellation threatens thousands of jobs and more than $100 million in ⁠state investments tied to offshore wind development, including port upgrades, transmission planning and supply-chain projects.

• The lawsuit alleges the agreement violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and the federal ⁠Judgment Fund Act because the payment was not tied to an actual lawsuit.

• An Interior Department ​spokesperson said the agency would not comment on ongoing litigation, but said the agreement was approved by the Department of Justice and went through appropriate channels.

• California first threatened the lawsuit ‌in June, saying the lease buyout could set back the state's offshore wind industry by years and undermine plans to ‌develop 25 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2045.

• The Trump administration has reached similar ⁠agreements with other offshore wind ‌developers, including TotalEnergies and Invenergy, ​requiring investments in conventional energy projects in exchange for terminating offshore wind leases.

• Ocean Winds was not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by ‌Nichola Groom)

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