Trump administration announces Duke Energy will voluntarily terminate offshore wind lease

Duke will reinvest the money it's being reimbursed in non-intermittent sources of energy, which includes nuclear and natural gas, as part of the Trump administration's efforts to lower costs and create more grid reliability.

Published: June 30, 2026 12:07pm

The Trump administration said that Duke Energy has agreed to abandon plans for an offshore wind project off the coast of North Carolina. 

Under the agreement, the Trump administration will reimburse Duke $129 million, which was slightly less than the utility paid the Biden administration for the lease, the New York Times reported.

Duke will then reinvest that money in non-intermittent sources of energy, which includes nuclear and natural gas, as part of the Trump administration's efforts to lower costs and create more grid reliability. 

The agreement is the fourth such agreement the Trump administration has negotiated to roll back the offshore wind leases the Biden administration granted in an effort to build 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030. 

 

 

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