Federal judge denies US Wind request for injunction in Maryland

Credit to: Coast TV, Matthew Pancek

Credit: Dennis Schroeder/National Renewable Energy Lab, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

A federal judge has rejected US Wind’s request for a preliminary injunction, finding that the offshore wind developer failed to demonstrate that the federal government has taken a final agency action warranting judicial intervention at this time.

In a ruling issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Judge Stephanie Gallagher concluded that US Wind’s concerns about possible future actions by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)—including the potential revocation of its Construction and Operations Plan (COP)—are speculative and not ripe for review. The court emphasized that US Wind has not been denied any specific government service or subjected to a legal consequence that would impede continuation of the project.

“US Wind may continue to develop the project under the approved COP that remains in force,” Judge Gallagher wrote, adding that the company’s decision to halt additional investment reflects a business choice rather than a government-imposed legal constraint.

The court likened US Wind’s position to prior cases in which judges declined to intervene absent a definitive agency decision with concrete legal effects. While acknowledging the financial risks associated with continued investment amid regulatory uncertainty, the judge noted that such risks are common and do not constitute a legally cognizable hardship.

US Wind argued that statements and internal agency interpretations indicated BOEM had effectively decided to revoke or undermine its approved plan. The court rejected that argument, finding that no such decision has “become fixed” and that further agency action would be required before any revocation or denial could occur.

Judge Gallagher also distinguished the case from others cited by US Wind, where courts found agency actions to be final because they immediately altered legal rights or obligations. Here, the ruling states, BOEM has neither compelled US Wind to change its conduct nor exposed it to legal liability. The judge further noted that the case differs from a separate offshore wind lawsuit decided earlier in December involving 18 state attorneys general, including Delaware’s Kathy Jennings and Maryland’s Anthony Brown.

Because the court determined that no final agency action had occurred, it concluded that US Wind failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits. The motion for a preliminary injunction was therefore denied without prejudice, leaving US Wind the option to renew its request should BOEM take definitive action in the future.