A federal judge has ruled that Dominion Energy Inc. may restart construction on its ambitious offshore wind project off the coast of Virginia, delivering another judicial rebuke to the Trump administration’s efforts to halt major renewable energy developments.
The decision came late Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, where Judge Jamar Walker granted a preliminary injunction blocking the government’s stop-work order that had paused work on Dominion’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind initiative. The ruling allows the $11.2 billion project to resume construction while a broader legal challenge over the suspension of offshore wind activities moves forward.
Dominion Energy had argued that the federal suspension—part of a broader pause ordered by the U.S. Department of the Interior affecting five East Coast wind projects—was causing “irreparable harm” and costing the company millions of dollars in lost progress. The company reported that delays were hurting its ability to complete the project, which is expected to generate enough clean energy to power hundreds of thousands of homes once operational.
Judicial Pushback Against National Security Justification
The Trump administration defended the suspension by citing classified national security concerns, including potential interference with military radar. However, several federal judges have questioned whether those concerns justify wholesale halts of ongoing construction without transparent justification or due process. Dominion’s case follows similar rulings this week allowing other developers—such as Denmark’s Ørsted and Norway’s Equinor—to resume work on their stalled offshore wind ventures.
Critics of the White House’s wind construction pause argue that the policy threatens the U.S. offshore wind industry, disrupts investment plans, and undermines broader efforts to expand renewable energy capacity. Supporters of the injunctions contend that indefinite stoppages without clear evidence of risk could unnecessarily derail projects that are already underway and legally permitted.
The legal battle is expected to continue as Dominion and other developers pursue challenges against the administration’s authority to suspend federal leases and stop work on energy projects. For the time being, however, Dominion’s turbines can rise again off Virginia’s shores, reaffirming a series of court decisions that have blocked the government’s effort to freeze major offshore wind developments.