Overview
- The California Energy Commission issued an investigative subpoena Monday to Golden State Wind seeking records on its deal to abandon a Morro Bay offshore lease for a $120 million federal payout.
- Under the agreement described by the Interior Department, the company must first invest an equal amount in U.S. oil and gas projects outside California to qualify for the refund.
- California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office told the company it anticipates potential litigation involving the federal government and parties to similar lease buyouts.
- The inquiry follows a Trump administration strategy to unwind offshore wind leases with nearly $2 billion in reimbursements, including $1 billion for TotalEnergies and roughly $900 million for Golden State Wind and Bluepoint Wind.
- House Democrats, led by Reps. Jared Huffman and Jamie Raskin, requested documents on the earlier TotalEnergies deal as part of broader oversight of the program.