MD judge dismisses US Wind’s claims in lawsuit over Ocean City wind farm

A federal judge has dismissed US Wind’s claims in the lawsuit between Ocean City and the federal government over a planned offshore wind farm.

U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher on Feb. 13 denied the Baltimore-based company’s counterclaims in the case, ruling that the Trump administration has not made a “final” decision to which the company can object.

The decision marks another defeat in the case for US Wind after its request for a preliminary injunction was denied in December.

Ocean City sued the U.S. Department of the Interior in October 2024 — at the tail end of Joe Biden’s presidency— in an attempt to stop the project, which would power more than 700,000 homes in the Delmarva peninsula.

The project, for which the government granted US Wind a lease in 2014, would include more than 100 wind turbines at least 11 miles off the coast of Ocean City. The plaintiffs, which also include Worcester County; Fenwick Island, Delaware; and environmental, fishing and business groups — say the project threatens endangered species and the tourist economy.

But the Trump administration last year took steps to roll back its approval of wind projects nationwide, including in Ocean City. President Donald Trump has said “I hate wind” and has posted online that wind power is “THE SCAM OF THE CENTURY!”

The government last fall asked Gallagher to vacate the company’s permit and remand it back to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

US Wind attempted to intervene in the case, arguing the government had “suddenly changed course … with the inevitable and intended effect of killing the Project.” The government’s actions pose an “existential threat,” the company argues.

Gallagher in December wrote that US Wind had “failed to identify any final agency action” ripe for judicial review, because the government’s review of the permit — known as a Construction and Operations Plan, or COP — was “ongoing.”

Since her denial of the company’s motion for a preliminary injunction in December, Gallagher wrote that “no circumstances appear to have materially changed.”

She wrote that US Wind merely “perceived” the Trump administration’s moves toward ending the project to be final.

She also denied the company’s request for leave to amend its cross claims, writing that those efforts would be “futile.” The company could, however, reassert or amend its claims, “if and when circumstances change.”

“US Wind argues that both its lease and (the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act) and related regulations prohibit the suspension or cancellation of its lease and the COP, absent limited circumstances,” she wrote.

“Federal Defendants’ actions, however, have not suspended or canceled US Wind’s lease or the COP. Rather, as explained in this Court’s prior Memorandum Opinion, the COP remains in force, and nothing legally precludes US Wind from continuing the development of its project.

Ocean City called Gallagher’s decision a “significant procedural victory.”

“We will continue to vigorously defend the interests of Ocean City’s residents, property owners, and visitors,” Mayor Rick Meehan stated in a press release on Wednesday. “Protecting the economic vitality of our resort community and preserving the character of our coastline remain our highest priorities. We are encouraged by Friday’s decision and will continue to pursue this matter through the appropriate legal channels.”

Nancy Sopko, US Wind’s vice president of external affairs, declined to comment directly on the decision, but defended the project and the legality of the prior approvals.

“We remain confident in the legality and validity of all permits issued for this project, and we are committed to bringing it to fruition,” Sopko said in a statement provided by a spokesperson. “The energy that these wind turbines will generate is desperately needed to provide relief across the region as electric bills climb along with the demand for power.”