Burbo Bank, Liverpool Bay, England, viewed from the sea turbines on Burbo wind farm off the U.K. coast.
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Shares of Danish renewables giant Orsted jumped on Tuesday, after a U.S. judge ruled the embattled firm can resume construction of an offshore wind farm that was halted by the Trump administration.
The decision means Orsted can resume work on the nearly completed Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut.
Shares of the Copenhagen-listed company were among the top performers on the pan-European Stoxx 600 index during morning deals. The stock price, which notched a fresh record low last month, was last seen up around 6.6%.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday granted a preliminary injunction sought by Orsted to overturn the Trump administration’s stop-work order, allowing construction on Revolution Wind to resume while the lawsuit progresses.
Orsted on Monday said it would start work on the project “as soon as possible.”
The company’s shares have tumbled 22.4% this year amid the Trump administration’s more aggressive stance towards renewables.
On Sept. 5, the Danish firm cut its full-year operating profit outlook following lower-than-normal offshore wind speeds during July and August. Orsted also received approval from shareholders for an emergency 60 billion Danish krone ($9.48 billion) rights issue to raise capital. Norwegian energy group Equinor said it would pledge almost $1 billion of fresh capital as part of the fundraising.
Trump block
The court victory represents a significant reprieve for the Danish company, which has been hit hard by U.S. President Donald Trump’s hardline stance on offshore wind projects.
Since his return to the White House earlier this year, Trump has clamped down on the wind power industry. On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order suspending new or renewed onshore and offshore wind leases.
The U.S. president, who is championing America’s oil and gas industries, told reporters in January that his administration was “not going to do the wind thing.”
The Department of Transportation last month said it was withdrawing $679 million of funding for a dozen infrastructure projects that support offshore wind development and would instead redirect the money to upgrade existing ports and other infrastructure, where possible.
(Source)