Jan 27 (Reuters) – A federal judge on Tuesday allowed Vineyard Wind to resume work on its Massachusetts offshore wind project, which President Donald Trump’s administration halted along with four other projects last month due to national security concerns.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, is the latest of several recent legal setbacks for Trump’s anti-offshore wind policy.
Vineyard Wind, a $4.5 billion joint venture between Spain’s Iberdrola and Denmark’s Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, is the fourth project paused by the Interior Department’s December 22 order to receive a reprieve from a federal court.
The injunctions have given developers of multi-billion dollar projects what could be temporary relief to continue construction while their underlying lawsuits proceed.
Vineyard Wind is 95% completed and has been sending power to the grid for more than a year. The administration’s order allowed the project to continue producing electricity during what was meant to be a 90-day pause.
Interior Department officials were not immediately available for comment.
(Reporting by Nichola Groom; Editing by Sonali Paul)
