As Donald Trump’s anti-wind government halts U.S. projects that have already broken ground, advocates are urging developers to look north, to Canada, for a more stable regulatory environment.

On April 16, the U.S. government issued an unprecedented directive to stop work on Equinor’s 810-megawatt offshore wind farm southeast of Long Island, New York. The White House said permits for the US$2.5-billion Empire Wind project—under construction since spring 2024—had been rushed through by the Joe Biden administration, The Associated Press reports.

The directive marked an escalation in Trump’s attacks on the wind industry, disrupting a project already under way, a territory once seen as off-limits for political interference. Politico reports that uncertainty could be felt across the energy sector, not just for renewables.

“No one with any kind of an energy project can rely on the permits that have been issued if this administration, for whatever reason—legally or illegally, rightly or wrongly—decides that they want to call into question permits that have already been issued,” said Allan Marks, a senior fellow at the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment.

“That should scare any investor in any energy project.”

Empire Wind was expected to support 1,000 construction jobs, plus 130 apprentices, 200 assembly jobs, and 50 permanent jobs for long-term operations. Equinor has paused work, but is consulting with the authorities for clarity on the matter and is considering “legal remedies, including appealing the order,” a spokesperson told The Guardian.

With Trump’s mercurial trade policies creating an unstable, uncertain economy, Sierra Club Canada suggests Norway-based Equinor should shift its renewables expansion north to Canada.

Equinor operates in wind, fossil fuels, and solar worldwide, but in Canada the company has so far only focused on oil and gas. In January, Equinor contracted two companies to begin preliminary work on its stalled Bay-du-Nord oil project off the Newfoundland and Labrador coast.

Conor Curtis, head of communications at Sierra Club Canada, said Equinor’s silence on renewables in Canada is surprising.

“I don’t know if it’s just that their Canadian office has oil and gas tunnel vision, but you see a huge difference in the interest they had in the U.S. versus Canada,” he told The Energy Mix.

After the Empire stoppage, Sierra Club released a statement repeating its calls for Equinor to invest in  renewables in Canada while it continues to pursue projects in the U.S.

Curtis added that Canada would be a stable partner that needs renewables growth for national security reasons, with all the elements needed for a strong supply chain—from available resources to growing electricity demand, as well as “popular support for renewables above and beyond oil and gas.”

“It would be a bit weird if they don’t invest in renewables in Canada,” Curtis said.

Equinor had not replied to a request for comment as The Mix went to virtual press last night.