Dominion Energy, an offshore wind developer and utility operating Virginia’s “data center alley,” filed a lawsuit this week against the Trump administration over its decision to halt federal leases for gigantic offshore wind projects. The move brings an abrupt halt to five wind farms already under construction, including Dominion’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project.
The complaint Dominion filed a complaint on Tuesday alleging that the cease-and-desist order issued Monday by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is unlawful, “arbitrary and capricious” and “violates constitutional principles that limit executive action.” Dominion wants a federal court to prevent BOEM from enforcing the stop-work order.
“Virginia needs every electron we can get as our electricity demand doubles.”
The lawsuit also alleged that “the sudden and unjustified withdrawal of regulatory approvals by government officials” threatens developers’ ability to pursue large-scale infrastructure projects needed to meet growing U.S. energy demand.
“Virginia needs every electron we can get as our electricity demand doubles. These electrons will power the data centers that win the artificial intelligence race,” Dominion said in a Dec. 22 release press release. According to the company, Virginia is home to the largest concentration of data centers in the world.
The rush to build up-to-date data centers for artificial intelligence – along with rising energy demand in manufacturing and the electrification of homes and vehicles – has put additional pressure on already strained power grids. As a result, rising electricity costs have become a flashpoint during elections in Virginia, as well as in communities near data center projects across the United States. Delaying construction of the Coastal Virginia offshore wind farm increases project costs that customers ultimately pay for, Dominion warns.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who is named as one of the defendants in the lawsuit, said the 90-day pause on offshore wind leases would allow the agency to address national security threats that appear to have been recently identified in classified reports. So does the US Department of the Interior quoted concerns about turbines causing radar interference.
“I want to know what changed?” national security expert and former commander of the USS Cole Kirk Lippold told the Associated Press. “To my knowledge, nothing has changed in the threat environment that would cause us to pause any offshore wind programs.”
The Trump administration previously halted construction of the Revolution Wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island and the Empire Wind project off the coast of Modern York before a federal judge and BOEM lifted stop working ordination. These projects have already existed suspended Again. President Donald Trump issued a presidential executive order memorandum after taking office in January, withdrawing areas of the Outer Continental Shelf from offshore wind leasing, which a federal judge downed earlier this month for being “arbitrary and capricious“
Dominion Energy says it has already obtained all federal, state and local permits necessary for the Coastal Virginia offshore wind farm, which is scheduled to begin construction in 2024. The company has already spent $8.9 billion on the $11.2 billion project, which was expected to begin generating power next year. When fully operational, the offshore wind farm is expected to be able to produce 9.5 million megawatt-hours a year of carbon-free electricity, or as much as about 660,000 U.S. homes could employ.