President Donald Trump suspended new federal offshore wind leasing pending an environmental and economic review, saying wind mills are ugly, expensive and harm wildlife.
"We're not going to do the wind thing. Big, ugly wind mills. They ruin your neighborhood," he said.
Without providing evidence, he said offshore wind projects were behind an increase in whale deaths off the U.S. East Coast in recent years.
He added: "They're the most expensive form of energy that you can have, by far. And they kill your birds and they ruin your beautiful landscapes."
A White House press release said Trump issued an executive action suspending offshore wind leasing from all areas of the U.S. outer continental shelf pending an environmental and economic review.
The order is not expected to impact existing U.S. offshore wind projects being advanced by companies including Orsted, Avangrid, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Dominion.
The move stirred concern among wind power representatives, who said Trump's position jarred with Trump's promise to maximize national energy output.
"A national energy emergency requires us to unleash all necessary sources of American energy - including offshore wind," said Hillary Bright, executive director of offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward.
Former U.S. President Joe Biden saw wind power as a vital part of his strategy to decarbonize the U.S. power sector to fight climate change and his government held multiple auctions aimed at developing big new projects.
Trump's opposition to wind power represents an about-face from his first term, when his administration had also sought to encourage offshore wind development.
The suspension came as Trump also laid out a sweeping plan to maximize U.S. oil and gas production while also withdrawing the U.S. from the 2015 Paris climate pact aimed at fighting global warming.
(Reuters - Writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Michael Perry)
