OSLO, Jan 2 (Reuters) – Orsted, a company from Denmark, announced on Friday that it is contesting the U.S. government's decision to suspend the lease for its Revolution Wind joint venture. The company intends to seek a court order to reverse the halt on its $5 billion offshore wind project.

The lease suspension was imposed by the Trump administration on December 22 for five major offshore wind projects under construction off the U.S. East Coast, citing national security concerns. This announcement led to a significant drop in the stock prices of offshore wind companies.

This suspension is another setback for offshore wind developers, who have encountered numerous interruptions to their projects during President Donald Trump's term. He has previously expressed that he finds wind turbines unattractive, expensive, and inefficient.

In a statement on Friday, Orsted mentioned that the Revolution Wind project is approximately 87% finished and was anticipated to start generating electricity by January 2026, prior to the lease suspension.

“Revolution Wind has invested billions of dollars and complied with all requirements of a comprehensive review process,” Orsted stated.

The joint venture, known as Revolution Wind LLC, is equally owned by Orsted and Skyborn Renewables, part of Global Infrastructure Partners. They have filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

In September, Orsted and Skyborn Renewables revealed that they had already invested or pledged around $5 billion towards the Revolution Wind project.

Following the government's announcement, Orsted's stock fell by 13% on Monday.

Facing challenges from inflation, rising interest rates, supply chain issues, and regulatory hurdles, Orsted had raised 60 billion Danish crowns ($9.4 billion) last year through a heavily discounted share issue to strengthen its finances.

State officials, Democratic lawmakers, and industry groups have criticized the government's decision as unwarranted.

The U.S. Department of the Interior stated that this decision was based on complaints from the Pentagon, which argued that the transportation of large turbine blades and their highly reflective towers can interfere with radar, complicating the detection of security threats.

Sunrise Wind LLC, a fully-owned subsidiary of Orsted also affected by a lease suspension, is currently exploring all possible options to address the situation.

(Reporting by Terje Solsvik; Editing by Tom Hogue)