Federal judge allows Vineyard Wind project to resume

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A federal judge on Jan. 27 allowed Vineyard Wind to resume work on its Massachusetts offshore wind project, which President Donald Trump’s administration halted along with four other projects in December due to national security concerns.

The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Brian E. 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.

An Interior Department spokesperson said the agency had no comment on pending litigation.

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 Dec. 22 order to receive a reprieve from a federal court.

The government paused the projects due to what it said was new, classified information on risks to national security from radar interference.

The injunctions have given developers of multi-billion dollar projects what could be temporary relief to continue construction while their underlying lawsuits, which seek to permanently block the administration’s order, proceed.

Vineyard Wind is 95 percent 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.

In a statement, Vineyard Wind said it would focus on restarting construction safely.

“As the legal process proceeds, Vineyard Wind will continue to work with the Administration to understand the matters raised in the Order,” the company said.

(Reporting by Nichola Groom; editing by Sonali Paul)