Overview
- Interior released settlement agreements showing TotalEnergies will give up leases off New York and North Carolina in exchange for nearly $1 billion redirected into non‑renewable energy projects.
- The documents allocate about $795 million tied to the New York Bight and $133 million to Carolina Long Bay and permit spending on oil, gas, liquefied natural gas, or non‑renewable power lines, including costs the company already incurred.
- The Trump administration cast the deal as an economic win, saying TotalEnergies agreed to halt new U.S. offshore wind plans and steer the refunded money toward Gulf Coast LNG development.
- Former Interior official Liz Klein and Democratic lawmakers criticized the refunds as harmful to taxpayers and likely unlawful, and watchdogs are probing whether the Treasury’s Judgment Fund would finance the payouts.
- Engie’s CEO Catherine MacGregor said the company has paused three U.S. offshore wind projects and is in talks with the administration about a possible lease refund, adding that she expects permitting to return under a future government.