Trump administration pays RWE $1.2 billion to cancel offshore wind farms off three states

The U.S. presidential administration has reached an agreement with German energy firm RWE to terminate leases for offshore wind farms. The deal is worth more than $1.2 billion, with funds drawn from the Department of the Interior budget, meaning taxpayer money. Under the arrangement, wind turbine projects are being scrapped off the coasts of New York, California and Louisiana.

This marks the fifth such transaction in which the White House has paid substantial sums to cancel green energy contracts. In total, the administration has spent about $4 billion on these efforts, according to Congressman Mike Levin, who posted the figure on social media. He argued the payments are aimed at keeping additional power off the grid and maintaining high electricity bills.

Part of the agreement requires RWE to invest $900 million to acquire a 16 percent stake in a liquefied natural gas project in Louisiana run by Australian company Woodside Energy. The firm has previously voiced support for Trump's policies, saying the administration understands the role affordable energy plays in national prosperity. Woodside Energy's chief operating officer, Daniel Kalms, has also started referring to the body of water connected to Louisiana as the Gulf of America.

Additionally, RWE signed a $300 million deal to develop a pipeline of 15 natural gas peaker plants across the country. RWE originally bought the New York lease under the Biden administration for about $1.1 billion and the California and Louisiana leases for $163 million. Adjusted for inflation, the company appears poised to profit from the arrangement.

RWE said the settlement resolves its legal claims and provides $1.22 billion, allowing it to direct resources toward projects that can be advanced with certainty. Interior Secretary Doug Burgham praised the company's "voluntary investment" in projects that strengthen the nation's energy security.