U.S. buys back Invenergy offshore wind leases

On June 17, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced a settlement with affiliates of Invenergy to terminate four offshore wind leases in federal waters. The leases cover areas off New York, off California’s central coast, and in the Gulf of Maine. Under the agreement, Interior will reimburse Invenergy $765 million in exchange for the voluntary termination of these leases. The department said the affected projects were in the early stages of development.

Interior characterized the settlement as a way to resolve the offshore wind positions while the projects were still relatively undeveloped. The announcement did not specify project timelines or expected output from the canceled leases, focusing instead on the financial terms and the redirection of capital. The transaction represents a significant federal buyback of offshore wind development rights from a major private power developer.

Invenergy plans to redirect the $765 million reimbursement into other energy projects in the United States. The company will use the funds to develop natural-gas-fired power plants in Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. In addition to these gas projects in the Midwest, Invenergy will allocate capital to geothermal projects in the Western United States. This reallocation marks a move away from the specific offshore wind sites covered by the terminated leases.

Invenergy senior vice president Daniel Runyan said the company will deploy additional capital into projects that can be delivered on a commercially reasonable timeline and meet customer demand. He added that Invenergy will continue to evaluate opportunities as market conditions evolve. His comments underscore the company’s emphasis on projects it views as more immediately executable within current commercial and regulatory environments.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum framed the settlement as part of a broader change in U.S. energy investment priorities under President Trump. He said that companies are shifting investment back toward "dependable, secure energy infrastructure" that can power the economy and lower utility costs. His statement highlighted natural gas and other dispatchable sources as central to this policy direction.

The Interior Department said the settlement underwent review by the Department of Justice. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward stated that the Justice Department looks forward to continued cooperation from companies reevaluating their energy investments. This review positions the Invenergy agreement as part of a wider federal scrutiny of how private firms adjust their portfolios in response to policy signals.

The termination of four offshore wind leases removes several planned projects from the future U.S. offshore wind pipeline. While the leases were still in early stages, their cancellation shifts Invenergy’s near-term focus away from these coastal sites. The move illustrates how federal reimbursement arrangements can alter the trajectory of large-scale offshore wind plans.

At the same time, the settlement channels substantial capital into natural gas generation in the Midwest and geothermal development in the Western United States. Together with the policy messaging from Interior, the agreement signals a rebalancing of some private investment away from certain offshore wind projects and toward other energy technologies that federal officials describe as more dependable and commercially timely.