President Donald Trump said on Friday that a temporary halt on offshore wind farm development off the New Jersey shore would become permanent.
Trump made the comments in a campaign phone call for New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli.
Trump had cast doubt on the industry's future after he suspended new federal offshore wind leasing pending an environmental and economic review, saying wind turbines are ugly, expensive and harm wildlife.
New Jersey is among the nation's top offshore wind states. Governor Phil Murphy had a goal of installing 11,000 megawatts by 2040 as part of his agenda to, "boost clean energy and combat climate change."
In its fourth solicitation, the state had sought up to 4,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities said two of three bidders had withdrawn from the process, leaving only Atlantic Shores, a joint venture between Shell and France's EDF.
Atlantic Shores received federal approval from the administration of former President Joe Biden last year. The Atlantic Shores South wind project was expected to generate up to 2,800 megawatts of electricity, enough to power close to one million homes, according to the US Interior Department.
(Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Leslie Adler)
