Off the coast of Rhode Island, towering offshore wind turbines, nearly three times taller than the Statue of Liberty, were in motion on Thursday, delivering clean energy to the region.
As wind farms along the East Coast continue to develop and become operational, President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed his opposition to the U.S. offshore wind industry, criticizing wind power and labeling turbines as unsightly.
The Associated Press embarked on a journey of approximately 100 miles (161 kilometers) to observe three of the five wind farms in the area. Out of these, two are fully operational, two are nearing completion, and one is about halfway finished.
Clearly visible from about 5 nautical miles away, the first turbines of the Revolution Wind project can be spotted from even greater distances on clear days. These massive structures, aligned in rows across the horizon, were seen spinning gently in the breeze.
The sheer size of these turbines is striking, even from a mile away.
Wind farms are actively under construction.
Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind are offshore wind projects being built to power about 1 million homes across Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York.
It took about an hour and a half to reach the Revolution Wind site, more than 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of the Rhode Island coast.
Some of the blades started to turn as the early morning winds picked up. Workers were inside the central hub of the wind farm, a large gray substation.
Revolution Wind is more than 90% complete. It recently began delivering power to New England’s grid, and it’s on track to be completed this year.
Nearby at Sunrise Wind, construction is nearly 50% complete. It’s a mix of installed turbines and empty yellow foundations that still await their towers and blades. A vessel with giant cranes to install the offshore wind components was parked nearby.
The tip of a spinning turbine appeared to touch the clouds.
The first large U.S. offshore wind farm
The first large U.S. offshore wind farm to open, South Fork Wind, borders the Revolution Wind site.
Now in its second year of operating commercially, its 12 turbines can send enough power to New York for more than 70,000 homes.
A ship that serves as a floating home base for technicians working on wind farms was next to one of the turbines on Thursday. The technicians had used the ship’s gangway to walk onto the turbine and stood at its base.
When South Fork opened in 2024, Biden administration officials said it was just the beginning — major new wind farms would dot U.S. coastlines to confront climate change, create jobs and accelerate the nation’s transition to clean energy.
Less than a year later, Trump returned to office and ordered a temporary halt to leasing and permitting for wind energy projects. His administration has paused work wind farms under construction, arranged a $1 billion payout to a French energy company to walk away from U.S. offshore wind development and added an extra layer of review for wind and solar projects. Federal judges have struck down some of his orders blocking wind energy development, including a ruling Tuesday stopping the administration from implementing some of the policies slowing the development of clean energy.
At the same time wind energy is being held back, the demand for electricity in the United States is skyrocketing and there are limited options in land-constrained coastal states for new, large energy projects in the next few years, which drives up utility bills, said Hillary Bright, executive director of the offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward.
“These energy policies are really hitting people at home, in their pocketbooks,” she said. “Offshore wind ultimately can be a part of that solution.”
The first five turbines
The closest site to the coast is the Block Island Wind Farm. It’s in state waters near Block Island, Rhode Island.
These five turbines began spinning in 2016, making this the first offshore wind farm in the United States. Its turbines are shorter than those installed at successive projects, but still look enormous up close. They replaced polluting diesel generators that were powering Block Island.
The first wind farm to finish construction during Trump’s tenure
Construction finished on Vineyard Wind in March. It was the first wind farm to reach this stage during Trump’s time in office.
It is expected to reach full operations in the coming months, to power over 400,000 Massachusetts homes and businesses.
There are two other major U.S. offshore wind farms under construction: a New York offshore wind project, Empire Wind, and a Virginia offshore wind project, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind.
“This is a major commercial industry in the United States of America,” Jason Grumet, CEO of the American Clean Power Association, said in an interview. “Whether the president is enthusiastic about it or not, we have massive energy projects that are either bringing power to the grid or near completion.”
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