Press Release: 6/3/2026

AG Campbell Sues U.S. Department Of The Interior For Illegally Cancelling TotalEnergies Offshore Wind Lease

 

Trump Administration’s Unlawful Attempt to Cancel Project Threatens States’ Economies, Energy Grids, and Climate Goals

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

6/02/2026

MEDIA CONTACT

Allie Zuliani, Deputy Press Secretary

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Call Allie Zuliani, Deputy Press Secretary at (617) 727-2543

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Email Allie Zuliani, Deputy Press Secretary at Allie.Zuliani@mass.gov

BOSTON — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell today joined New York and five other attorneys general in suing the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) over its unlawful settlement with TotalEnergies and resulting cancellation of TotalEnergies’s major offshore wind lease off the coast of New York that would have supplied power to Massachusetts. 

In March 2026, DOI announced a settlement agreement with TotalEnergies, a French energy company, under which TotalEnergies would cancel two offshore wind leases in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer funds. The agreement also required TotalEnergies to invest in oil and gas projects and forgo development of new offshore wind projects in the United States. AG Campbell and the coalition argue that this settlement agreement violates federal law governing offshore wind leases and federal settlement payouts, and are asking the court to vacate the agreement and restore the leases. 

“The Trump Administration’s decision to illegally cancel this project will increase costs, exacerbate climate change, harm public health, and reduce the reliability of our energy grid,” said AG Campbell. “President Trump has made his opposition to offshore wind clear for years, and this action reflects a continued effort to undermine clean energy development in favor of fossil fuel interests. Massachusetts will continue to challenge illegal actions that threaten our economy, our environment, and our residents.” 

In 2022, Attentive Energy — a subsidiary of TotalEnergies — paid $795 million to purchase an offshore wind lease approximately 47 miles off the coast of New York, as part of the highest-grossing competitive offshore energy lease sale in United States history. The lease area was expected to support two projects: Attentive Energy One, which would have delivered energy to New York City, and Attentive Energy Two, which would have served New Jersey. In March 2026, with construction plans already under review, DOI suddenly announced that it had reached an agreement with TotalEnergies to cancel the Attentive Energy lease and a separate lease off the coast of North Carolina. 

Massachusetts routinely imports energy from New York to serve its growing energy demand. From January to April 2026, New England relied on energy imports from New York to serve about 7% of its energy load. The coalition argues that eliminating the TotalEnergies project and constraining New York’s future energy supply would also harm Massachusetts, which relies on New York’s energy production to meet its electricity needs.  

DOI claimed that new national security concerns justified the cancellation, even though the federal government had already reviewed and approved the lease area after years of analysis and consultation with the Department of Defense. Under the agreement, the federal government would reimburse the company with $795 million from the federal Judgment Fund, which may be used only to settle claims related to ongoing or imminent litigation. The agreement then requires TotalEnergies to invest approximately $795 million into fossil fuel projects. DOI also announced that TotalEnergies had pledged not to develop any new offshore wind projects in the United States. 

AG Campbell and the coalition assert that the cancellation of the Attentive Energy projects will harm their states’ economies, energy grids, and climate goals. In New England, the cancellation of the lease would deprive the region of important reliability, affordability, clean energy, climate, and emission-reduction benefits. For example, when New England cannot meet its electricity demand during cold winter months, more expensive and more polluting generators, including oil and gas burning facilities, are brought online to produce electricity. Offshore wind generation can reduce the need for these high-cost, high-emissions electricity generators in winter months, and the cancellation of this lease will deprive the region of that benefit.  

The attorneys general argue that DOI’s deal with TotalEnergies violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which limits the agency’s ability to cancel offshore wind leases. Under the law, to cancel a lease, DOI must hold a hearing, specifically find that continuing the lease would likely cause serious harm to life, property, national security, or the environment, and determine that the benefits of cancellation outweigh the benefits of allowing the lease to continue. DOI did none of those things before cancelling the Attentive Energy lease.  

The coalition also argues that the deal violates the Judgment Fund Act, as the $795 million payment was not a legitimate compromise settlement in an imminent lawsuit, but a pretextual ploy to subsidize fossil fueled energy sources and halt the wind energy industry. The complaint also alleges that the deal violates the Administrative Procedure Act, as the federal government failed to follow the required procedure to cancel the lease. In addition, they contend DOI violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to complete an Environmental Impact Statement for the cancellation.  

AG Campbell and the coalition are asking the court to strike down the settlement, vacate the lease cancellation, and stop the administration from taking further action to implement this deal. 

Joining AG Campbell in today’s lawsuit, which was led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, are the attorneys general of Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont.