California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a Notice of Intent to Sue the federal government and RWE U.S. Offshore over the recently announced $1.22 billion deal to surrender the energy company’s offshore wind lease off the North Coast in exchange for fossil fuel assets in other parts of the country.
The AG’s office called the agreement “an unlawful agreement between the U.S. Department of the Interior and RWE U.S. Offshore that would undermine California’s offshore wind energy development” in a news release issued Tuesday afternoon.
“Don’t be fooled; this agreement is just another ploy to kill offshore wind projects and slip millions of dollars into the hands of President Trump’s donors and business partners. Yet again, the Trump Administration is trying to thwart the clean energy industry, but when the president repeats his play, so will we,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today, we’re putting the Trump Administration on notice that we intend to sue. Offshore wind investments create jobs, bolster our economy, and deliver reliable clean energy to Californians. Whenever the Trump Administration tries to attack clean energy, my office will be here to fight back.”
The text of the notice of intent notes that the state’s suit will target violations of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. The AG’s office said that the Trump administration and RWE’s agreement violated several provisions of the OCSLA. By not holding public hearings on the agreed upon lease termination, not entering into a five-year preliminary lease suspension, not consulting with California Gov. Gavin Newsom and compensating RWE well “in excess of the statutory formula for cancellations and suspensions,” among other things, the state contends that the Trump Administration accord violates the law and “are causing ongoing harm to California.”
CEC Chair David Hochschild, in a statement Tuesday, said, “The Trump administration’s latest attack on California’s clean energy future will not go unanswered. We will vigorously contest these unlawful backroom deals that would redirect public funds from clean offshore wind to polluting fossil fuel projects owned by donors to Donald Trump’s campaign coffers. Our state has invested over $100 million to support offshore wind, which will strengthen energy independence, create good‑paying jobs and build the clean energy future Californians demand. We will defend that progress every time it is threatened.”
The terms of the deal
RWE first announced its deal with the Trump administration in early August. According to a news release issued by RWE, the agreement allows the company to “redeploy its capital to accelerate value-accretive opportunities that deliver reliable and affordable energy.” That “redeployment” is described as including “$900 million to acquire an indirect 16% stake in the Louisiana LNG Project” — a large-scale natural gas development that has been criticized as a major source of greenhouse gas pollution — and other natural gas projects throughout the U.S.
The agreement is, according to the AG, “part of the Trump Administration’s ongoing attempt to cancel offshore wind projects and replace them with fossil-fuel energy projects.” Earlier this year, the Trump administration struck similar deals with Golden State Wind LLC and Invenergy. The AG’s office filed suit against the federal government and Golden State last week.
RWE’s Canopy Offshore Wind Farm was announced in January of 2024 as a 1.6 GW wind farm 28 miles off the coast of Humboldt County, “one of the first commercial-scale floating offshore wind farms that will deliver sustainable power and help firmly position the North Coast as a hub for the floating offshore wind industry on the West Coast.”
Robert Schaulis can be reached at 707-441-0585.