By the Numbers: Federal Offshore Wind Lease Buyouts

That’s how much the Department of the Interior (DOI) will pay energy companies to terminate 12 federal offshore wind leases they previously obtained through competitive auctions.

Federal waters hold abundant domestic energy and mineral resources that belong to all Americans and must be managed to provide a fair return to taxpayers. The offshore wind program generates taxpayer revenue through bonus bids at competitive auctions, annual per-acre rental fees, and operating fees once projects begin generating electricity.

Beginning in March 2026, DOI initiated a series of agreements to terminate existing offshore wind leases and direct private investment elsewhere, often toward oil and gas. The companies had acquired these leases through competitive auctions and, in several cases, already invested substantial sums developing them. As of September 2026, DOI will reimburse energy companies approximately $3.9 billion under agreements.

The agreements follow a similar structure. Reimbursement of lease payments is tied to companies abandoning their offshore wind projects and making equivalent qualifying investments in other energy sectors, including oil and gas production, liquefied natural gas export terminals, natural gas-fired power plants, nuclear, geothermal, and grid infrastructure. Some agreements allow investments made before they were signed to count toward reimbursement.

The cancellations would return billions in revenue already deposited into the federal Treasury while eliminating future lease payments and operating fees taxpayers could have received if the projects entered production. The canceled leases were expected to support projects with an estimated 19.2 gigawatts of combined nameplate capacity.

For more on the taxpayer, energy, and oversight implications of these agreements, read our full report.

This tracker details the offshore wind leases the administration has targeted for cancellation to date, the companies involved, the amount taxpayers would reimburse, and the planned generating capacity associated with each lease.

Timeline of Canceled Leases

March 23, 2026: DOI announced its first agreement to terminate offshore wind leases, agreeing to refund TotalEnergies $928 million for two leases in the New York Bight and Carolina Long Bay. In exchange, TotalEnergies agreed to invest an equivalent amount in oil and gas projects, including the Rio Grande LNG facility in Texas and oil and gas production.

April 27, 2026: DOI announced agreements with Bluepoint Wind and Golden State Wind, providing roughly $900 million in reimbursements for leases off California, New Jersey, and New York. Both companies agreed to make equivalent investments in fossil fuel projects and not pursue new offshore wind projects in the United States.

June 12, 2026: DOI announced an agreement with Invenergy covering four leases off California, Maine, and New York. The agreement provides roughly $765 million in reimbursements tied to investments in natural gas power plants in Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri and geothermal projects in the western United States.

June 26, 2026: DOI announced an agreement to terminate Duke Energy’s offshore wind lease in the Carolina Long Bay area. To receive reimbursement, Duke Energy or its affiliates must make an equivalent amount of eligible investments, including nuclear power, natural gas generation, energy storage, and grid infrastructure.

August 4, 2026: DOI announced an agreement with RWE to cancel three offshore wind leases and refund approximately $1.22 billion in bonus bid payments. In exchange, RWE agreed to make equivalent investments in conventional energy projects, including $900 million in LNG infrastructure and $300 million in natural gas turbine reservations.

Taxpayers for Common Sense has some more resources on this issue; feel free to check them out for more context:

• Dept. of Interior’s $1 Billion Wind Buyout Is Blowing Taxpayer Dollars Away
• Billion Dollar Buyouts
• Federal Offshore Wind Leasing Program
• Understanding the Judgment Fund

Read the report for more detail on the canceled leases, the Judgment Fund, and the taxpayer implications of the buyouts.

For additional information, please contact Taxpayers for Common Sense at info@taxpayer.net.