The wind energy crisis deepens as Danish company Ørsted cancels its South New Jersey projects in the face of rising public opposition, evidence of harm to whales and collapsing economic viability. Michael Shellenberger in Public has the story.
For years, the Biden administration, environmentalists, and the wind industry have argued that the building of giant wind turbines along the East Coast was inevitable. Wind energy was already cheaper than fossil fuels, supporters claimed. And President Joe Biden made wind energy a significant priority and was photographed in a meeting with wind executives holding talking points touting its benefits.
But now, Danish wind energy company Ørsted has cancelled its South New Jersey projects, Ocean Wind 1 and 2, in the face of rising public opposition, evidence that wind industry activities were killing whales and worsening economics. Ocean Wind 1 and 2 would have sited more than 200 massive wind turbines just 15 miles away from the New Jersey shore.
Ørsted’s stock has fallen 60% this year and the New York Times estimates it will have to write off $5.6 billion in investments in the two projects. “There’s really not a Plan B right now,” confessed Jeff Tittel, the former Director of the Sierra Club’s New Jersey chapter. “It’s a political disaster.”
In reaction to Ørsted’s decision, an investment analyst told the Telegraph of London, “The wind power sector has stalled, with virtually no companies in the industry now turning a profit.”
According to the Telegraph, the announcement has raised fears that Ørsted may also cancel Hornsea 3, its flagship U.K. project, off the coasts of Norfolk and Lincolnshire. We can but hope.
The Net Zero ‘dream’ continues its long, agonising collapse. Popcorn?
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