Danish energy giant Ørsted AS has ceased development of two wind farms which had been due to be built off the New Jersey coast in the US.
Ørsted’s Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2 projects were given the axe on Tuesday, as wider economic issues plague the sector.
“Macroeconomic factors have changed dramatically over a short period of time,” Ørsted’s Americas chief executive David Hardy commented.
These include “high inflation, rising interest rates, and supply chain bottlenecks impacting long-term capital investments”, he explained.
The two wind farms had been expected to house capacity of around 1.1GW each, with their cancellations marking a blow for New Jersey state, which aims to be powered entirely by clean energy come 2035.
“We are extremely disappointed to have to take this decision, particularly because New Jersey is poised to be a US and global hub for offshore wind energy,” Hardy added.
Ørsted, which is the world’s largest wind energy developer, confirmed it would retain the seabed lease area where the projects were meant to be built as future options are considered.
The company also committed to a joint venture with Eversource Energy, which will see the duo develop a 704MW offshore project to provide power to the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Shares in Ørsted fell over 21% early on following the news.