Trump administration halts UMaine floating wind turbine project 

The University of Maine’s 375-ton prototype floating wind turbine platform now sits in limbo at Mack Point after the Trump administration’s suspension of its $12.5 million Department of Energy project grant.

Samantha Warren, chief external and governmental affairs officer for the UMaine System, said the April 11 suspension notice came just hours after the quarter-scale prototype was towed into Mack Point, Searsport’s industrial hub, where it remains.

The letter, from the U.S. Department of Energy’s ARPA-E grants officer, said the funding was suspended for 90 calendar days because the university failed to comply with “one or more” of the terms and conditions of the grant – but did not provide any specific allegations. The university has the right to appeal the suspension, and ARPA-E said the 90-day suspension can be extended. No costs incurred during the suspension period will be covered by the federal grant, the letter said.

Meanwhile, the university is assessing the impact of the suspension notice, and Warren said the UMaine System could have further comment once its assessment of the impact on the project and contractors is complete. Over the next six weeks, the floating concrete hull was to have been outfitted with a tower, turbine and blades at Mack Point before being anchored offshore at Dyce Head, near Castine, in May.

UMaine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center won the award last year, through a national competition, to continue work on its VolturnUS floating turbines. Engineered by UMaine researchers, the floating concrete hull was fabricated by local contractors in Trenton. It integrates a next-generation motion-mitigating system developed and patented by UMaine researchers, including students, to reduce wave and wind impacts. UMaine launched the prototype March 30 in the waters off Trenton.

Rep. Reagan Paul, R-Winterport, called the federal government’s halt “good news.” In a statement published on X, she said, “It’s good to see the University of Maine on the radar. Remember that this floating offshore wind research project has cost tens of millions of dollars and decades of research – and last year failed DOE testing for commercial scalability. Enough is enough.”

Paul’s Maine House district includes Sears Island, the state’s controversial choice for building a wind port for launching wind turbines into the Gulf of Maine.

In its brief letter, ARPA-E attributed the grant suspension to the university’s “failure to comply with one or more of the National Policy Assurances.” Warren said UMaine was not aware of any previous concerns or investigation into its compliance. National Policy Assurances are commitments by grantees to adhere to specific federal regulations and policies, including those regarding nondiscrimination.

UMaine recently received two similar U.S. Department of Energy award suspension notices. Warren said the university has long partnered with DOE “on research and development projects that benefit students’ career preparation, our state’s workforce and economy, and the nation’s energy production and security.”

The University of Maine System maintains it is compliant with all state and federal laws, and the conditions of its federal grants and contracts, a number of which have been recently terminated or suspended.

Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it had completed a Title IX compliance review of the UMaine System, which “has clearly communicated its compliance,” Warren said.