Updated: Nov. 1, 3:30 p.m.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Danish energy developer Orsted said Tuesday night it is scrapping two large offshore wind power projects off the coast of New Jersey, adding uncertainty to the financial viability of a nascent industry the Biden administration and many state governments are counting on to help transition away from the burning of planet-warming fossil fuels.
The company said it is scrapping its Ocean Wind I and II projects in southern New Jersey.
Orsted CEO Mads Nipper said in a statement the company was disappointed to be halting the projects because it believes the United States needs wind power to reduce carbon emissions.
“However, the significant adverse developments from supply chain challenges, leading to delays in the project schedule, and rising interest rates have led us to this decision,” Nipper said.
Orsted stands to lose a $100 million guarantee it posted with New Jersey earlier this month that it would build Ocean Wind I by the end of 2025. That money could be returned to ratepayers. Company stock tumbled about 20% after the announcement and it has dropped $4 billion in value over the last three quarters.
The company said it would move forward with its Revolution Wind project in Connecticut and Rhode Island.
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Orsted, the world's largest wind energy developer, warned in August that it might walk away from one or both of its New Jersey projects, which it said needed more financial subsidies beyond a tax break approved by the state that would have let the company keep as much as $1 million in tax credits that otherwise would have had to be returned to electricity ratepayers.
At the time, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who is pushing to make his state the East Coast hub of offshore wind, said the break was necessary to save the jobs and economic activity Orsted would have brought to the state.
Tuesday's news prompted a furious response from Murphy, who said in a statement that the decision calls into question Orsted’s credibility and competence. "I have directed my Administration to review all legal rights and remedies and to take all necessary steps to ensure that Orsted fully and immediately honors its obligations," said the governor.
The decision was the latest in a series of setbacks for the offshore wind industry in the northeast. Two weeks ago, New York regulators rejected a request from companies for larger subsidies to complete large-scale wind, solar and offshore wind projects, saying the companies were expected to to abide by the terms of their deals with the state.
A handful of other offshore wind projects have been canceled. They include the Park City Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts. Avangrid, a subsidiary of Spanish utility company Iberdrola, and several Connecticut utilities scrapped a long-term power purchase agreement.
Offshore wind in general, and particularly in New Jersey, has faced growing opposition, both politically — mostly from Republicans — and from residents concerned about impacts on the environment, increased costs and the impairment of views of the ocean horizon.
In fact, opponents of the project celebrated the news. Robin Schaffer, with Protect Our Coast, believes the change in public support for offshore wind also played a role in this decision.
"They realized it was an untenable situation, even with the billions of dollars in tax breaks," said Schaffer. "It was never viable economically."
Still projects in some places are moving forward.
In Virginia, a utility’s plans for an enormous wind farm off that state’s coast gained key federal approval Tuesday. Dominion Energy received a favorable “record of decision” from federal regulators who reviewed the potential environmental impact of its plan to build 176 turbines in the Atlantic, more than 20 miles off Virginia Beach.
Dominion said its project will be the largest offshore wind farm under development in the U.S. and eventually expected to generate enough electricity to power up to 660,000 homes after completion of construction by late 2026.
And New Jersey still has several other offshore wind projects in various stages of development, with four new proposals submitted in August alone.
KYW Newsradio's Mike Dougherty contributed to this story.