TotalEnergies released from $1-billion U.S. offshore wind leases, pivots to oil and gas
(Bloomberg) – The Trump administration released TotalEnergies from $1 billion in offshore wind leases so the French energy giant can redirect those funds into oil and natural gas investments in the U.S.
Under the agreement, Total is no longer committed to developing wind farms off the coasts of New York, New Jersey and North Carolina, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Monday at the CERAWeek by S&P Global conference in Houston.
In return for the new fossil-energy investments, the U.S. will reimburse TotalEnergies “dollar-for-dollar” up to the amount the company paid for the initial leases, according to an Interior Department statement.
President Donald Trump’s campaign against offshore wind is part of his wider effort to roll back Biden-era climate policies and to champion fossil fuels. His attempts to thwart construction of five wind farms at sea has been undermined by court decisions in recent months.
TotalEnergies Chief Executive Officer Patrick Pouyanne said Monday that the company will “accelerate” investments in U.S. LNG. The U.S. deal doesn’t impact the company’s commitment to wind on other nations, he added at the Monday media briefing in Houston.
The French company — through its Attentive Energy LLC unit — was awarded a lease to develop more than 3 gigawatts of offshore wind power off New York and New Jersey — enough to provide renewable power to over 1 million homes across the two states. The license granted by the Biden administration in 2022 cost $795 million.
Total subsequently sold a 44% stake in Attentive Energy to Macquarie Group Ltd’s Corio Generation and Rise Light & Power for $420 million. Total was also awarded a 1-gigawatt lease offshore North Carolina for $160 million in 2022.
The lease relinquishment discussion were previously reported by the New York Times.
