The Department of the Interior paused all large-scale offshore wind leases under construction in the United States due to national security risks.

Timeline

1. Update · Dec 23, 2025, 04:25 PMTrue
   On December 22, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced an immediate pause of leases for five large offshore wind projects under construction along the East Coast due to national security risks identified by the Pentagon. Coverage from Reuters, AP News, and NPR confirms the action and names the affected leases: Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, CVOW – Commercial, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind 1. The pause is described as giving federal agencies time to assess possible mitigations, with no public detailing of the risks. Verdict: True—the Interior action and corroborating reporting indicate that five large-scale offshore wind leases under construction were paused due to national security concerns.
   • https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-pausing-five-offshore-wind-projects-over-national-security-concerns-burgum-2025-12-22/
   • https://apnews.com/article/trump-offshore-wind-energy-climate-c0ac1e447c93126327f1922327921aa0
   • https://www.npr.org/2025/12/22/g-s1-103320/offshore-wind-power-pause-trump-administration-new-england-new-york-virginia-national-security
2. Update · Dec 23, 2025, 04:05 PMTrue
   On 12/22/2025, the Department of the Interior announced it was pausing the leases for all large-scale offshore wind projects under construction in the United States due to national security risks identified by the Department of War in recently completed classified reports. The press release lists five affected leases: Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, CVOW – Commercial, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind 1. Major outlets including Reuters, AP News, and NPR corroborated that five projects were paused for national security concerns along the East Coast, citing Pentagon/DoD involvement. The DOI release also uses the historically anachronistic attribution 'Department of War,' but credible reporting centers the action on national security concerns identified by the defense apparatus; the core claim — Interior pausing all large-scale offshore wind leases under construction — is supported.
   • https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/trump-administration-protects-us-national-security-pausing-offshore-wind-leases
   • https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-pausing-five-offshore-wind-projects-over-national-security-concerns-burgum-2025-12-22/
   • https://apnews.com/article/trump-offshore-wind-energy-climate-c0ac1e447c93126327f1922327921aa0
   • https://www.npr.org/2025/12/22/g-s1-103320/offshore-wind-power-pause-trump-administration-new-england-new-york-virginia-national-security
3. Original article · Dec 22, 2025
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