The Trump administration has agreed to pay German utility RWE $1.2 billion to relinquish offshore wind leases off California, Louisiana and New York, bringing its spending on cancelled leases to $3.93 billion across 12 projects. The decision matters because it replaces potential large-scale renewable generation with investment in fossil-fuel infrastructure and illustrates the administration’s effort to unwind offshore wind development.

RWE said it will put $900 million towards a minority stake in a Louisiana liquefied natural gas export terminal and use the remaining $300 million to buy gas turbines for 15 peaking power plants. The cancelled New York project alone was expected to generate more than 3 gigawatts, while the gas turbines may not be available until the early 2030s because of supply backlogs; RWE is nevertheless continuing offshore wind investment in the UK, where it recently acquired 6.9 gigawatts of capacity.