Supporters of offshore wind in New England are celebrating the completion of two projects, despite legal challenges from the Trump administration.

Revolution Wind off the Rhode Island coast started sending power to the grid this month, while Vineyard Wind, in waters near Massachusetts, completed construction.

Kate Sinding Daly, senior vice president for law and policy at the Conservation Law Foundation, said the projects will prevent millions of tons of carbon pollution each year and protect ratepayers from volatile energy prices.

"These are projects that can deliver energy on a very reliable basis," she said. "They really provide critical backup to the grid during those periods where demand is at its highest."

The Trump administration cited national security concerns when issuing a stop-work order last year on all offshore wind projects, but federal judges ultimately allowed construction to resume.

The two projects will power more than 700,000 homes and businesses in the region. The Vineyard Wind project alone is expected to save Massachusetts ratepayers more than a billion dollars over the first two decades of operation and create more than 3,600 jobs.

Sinding Daly said the war in Iran is revealing America’s vulnerability to energy price fluctuations due to its continued dependence on fossil fuels. She said it's homegrown, clean energy that enhances security and offers steady, reliable prices people can afford.

"The resilience of these projects really should give people a sense of how important they are going to be over the long term to providing energy to the region," she said. "They are the energy future."

She said the Trump administration has worked to spread misinformation regarding the reliability of offshore wind power along with unsubstantiated claims of damage caused to marine environments. She pointed to South Fork Wind – the first commercial-scale offshore wind project near Block Island – that was completed in 2024. Its turbines operated during 90% of hours last year, powering more than 70,000 homes.

Source: Public News Service