Trump Admin Pays French Firm $1 Billion to Exit US Offshore Wind Leases

• The Trump administration will pay TotalEnergies $1 billion to abandon two US offshore wind leases off North Carolina and New York.
• TotalEnergies will invest the refunded money into fossil fuel projects, including a Texas LNG plant and oil/gas activities.
• The Interior Department hailed the deal as an "innovative agreement," while environmental groups called it a "billion-dollar bribe" to block clean energy.
• New York Governor Kathy Hochul and North Carolina Governor Josh Stein denounced the deal as an "outrageous abuse of taxpayer dollars" and a "terrible deal."
• TotalEnergies had paused its projects after Trump's election and pledged not to develop new US offshore wind, citing it's "not in the country’s interest."