Allison Dinner / EPA
Donald Trump
EDP Renováveis fell to its lowest value since March 2020 after Trump said that the US will have a policy in which “no” wind farms will be built. Energy sector in Europe lost 206 billion.
It all started with a statement from the President-elect of the USA: the renewable energy sector is facing a major devaluation in Europe and the effect — which could affect billions of euros in projects and increase the risk of investment in the sector — was felt in Lisbon.
After Trump said during a press conference in Florida on January 7 that the US will “have a policy where no wind turbine farms will be built”, shares in EDP Renováveis and EDP fell, resulting in a joint loss of 934 million euros in market value.
EDP Renováveis depreciated 4.92%falling to the lowest value since March 2020while EDP, which has operated in the United States for 18 years, recorded a remains 3.28% — an impact that reflects investor concern over proposed restrictions on new wind farms in the U.S., a crucial market for clean energy companies.
European companies in the “utilities” sector also recorded losses. Danish Vestas and German Siemens Energy fell significantly following Trump’s statements. Analysts believe that the former president’s rhetoric increased the perception of risk for the wind industry, especially in offshore projects.
“It is the most expensive energy there is. It is many, many times more expensive than natural gas, so we are going to have a policy where no wind farms will be built,” Trump said.
Trump criticized the projects for allegedly being expensive and harmful, referring to specific initiatives, such as a wind farm off the coast of New Jersey, designed by French company EDF Renewables.
“They dirty our country“, said Trump quoted by . “No one wants them and they are very expensive.”
Trump has promised to issue an executive order against new wind developments on the first day of his new term if he is re-elected. The plan designed by many of Trump’s former advisers and seen as a roadmap for his presidency suggests several measures to end investment in renewable energy and reinforce the focus on fossil fuels.
The program advocates ending support for the production of electric cars in Detroit, end public support for renewable energy and reversing a crucial 2009 conclusion by the U.S. Environmental Agency that carbon dioxide causes harm, a position that underpins much of the federal effort to control pollution.
