US Government Reaches USD 1.2 Billion Offshore Wind Exit Deal with RWE

RWE and the US Department of the Interior (DOI) have reached a settlement agreement under which RWE will relinquish its offshore wind leases in the New York Bight and off the coasts of California and Louisiana in exchange for USD 1.22 billion (around EUR 1.06 billion) in settlement funds.

The agreement resolves RWE U.S. Offshore’s claims against the US government and brings an end to the company’s development plans associated with the three lease areas. RWE said it had invested more than USD 1 billion in acquiring the leases and developing the projects, but determined that “there is no path forward to permit these projects in the U.S. for the foreseeable future.”

RWE did not specify how the USD 1.22 billion settlement compares with the individual lease payments or development expenditure, but the amount is notable in the context of previous offshore wind lease termination agreements reached by the Trump administration, as it is the largest such settlement announced to date.

The first agreement of this kind was reached with TotalEnergies in March, when the company agreed to relinquish its New York Bight and Carolina Long Bay leases in return for USD 928 million in reimbursements. TotalEnergies committed to redirecting the funds to US oil and gas investments.

In April, the US government reached agreements with developers behind the Bluepoint Wind and Golden State Wind projects, led by Ocean Winds, under which the companies agreed to terminate their leases in exchange for a combined USD 885 million in returned lease fees. Bluepoint Wind’s lease was off New York, while Golden State Wind’s lease covered a 2 GW floating wind project off California.  

Invenergy followed in June, agreeing to relinquish four leases in the New York Bight, off California and in the Gulf of Maine for a USD 765 million reimbursement, while committing to redirect the funds into natural gas and geothermal projects.

Duke Energy subsequently agreed to terminate its Carolina Long Bay lease for USD 129 million, with the company committing to reinvest an equivalent amount in generation and grid infrastructure in the Carolinas.

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In the US, RWE holds an offshore wind portfolio of nearly 6 GW, including the 2.8 GW Community Offshore Wind project off New York and New Jersey, the 1.6 GW Canopy floating wind project off the coast of Humboldt County in California, and the 1.24 GW development site off Louisiana.

In April last year, RWE’s CEO Marcus Krebber said the company was pausing all activities in the US offshore wind market due to political uncertainty.

This May, reports emerged that RWE was considering a similar arrangement with the Trump administration, prompting more than 50 US organisations to call on RWE to abandon the reported negotiations.

Following the settlement deal with the US government, RWE said it would redeploy capital towards energy projects that can be advanced with greater certainty.

The company’s announced plans include a USD 900 million investment for an indirect 16 per cent stake in the Louisiana LNG project and a USD 300 million turbine reservation agreement to support a pipeline of natural gas peaking projects.

RWE said that it also plans to invest approximately EUR 17 billion in the US over the next six years, increasing its generation capacity from approximately 13 GW today to 22 GW by 2031.

Announcing the agreement in the US on 6 August, the company noted that it remains focused on growing its offshore wind activities globally.

“RWE is one of the world’s leading offshore wind developers with 18 offshore wind farms currently in operation, four under construction, and additional projects in development – including 6.9 GW of capacity secured in the UK’s most recent offshore wind auction”, the company said.

RWE recently raised its full-year 2026 earnings outlook for its Offshore Wind division after the business delivered stronger-than-expected results in the first half of the year, which RWE says were driven by higher electricity generation under more favourable wind conditions.

Based on preliminary figures, RWE’s Offshore Wind segment is expected to close the first half of the year with adjusted EBITDA of EUR 810 million in the first six months of 2026, up from EUR 643 million in the same period last year.

The company attributed the increase primarily to higher production volumes as wind conditions returned to normal following what RWE said were unusually weak conditions in the first half of 2025. On the back of the stronger performance, the company increased its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance for the Offshore Wind division by EUR 100 million, to EUR 1.65 billion-EUR 2.15 billion.

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