RWE agrees $1.22 billion U.S. deal to scrap offshore wind leases

RWE reached a $1.22 billion settlement with the Trump administration to surrender three offshore wind leases off New York, California and Louisiana, becoming the fifth developer this year to exit U.S. offshore wind projects under a federal buyback program. The projects were in the early stages of development and, the company said, had no foreseeable permitting path after the administration halted federal permitting for offshore wind. RWE said the payment would roughly reimburse what it paid for the leases under the Biden administration, resolve legal disputes and leave it with no remaining U.S. offshore wind leases. The sites could have supplied about seven gigawatts of power, enough for more than 5 million homes. The deal lifts total federal spending on offshore wind lease buybacks to roughly $3.9 billion. RWE said it will redirect about the same amount into U.S. gas projects, including a $900 million indirect 16 percent stake in a liquefied natural gas project in Louisiana and a $300 million order for gas turbines, as it plans at least 15 natural gas peaking plants. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum welcomed the shift, while Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said the buybacks steer consumers toward costlier fossil-fuel generation. The settlement follows earlier agreements with TotalEnergies, Golden State Wind, Bluepoint Wind and Invenergy, and comes as states and renewable groups continue court challenges tied to the administration's wind policy.