Equinor challenges US order to suspend Empire Wind project

Jan 2 (Reuters) - Norwegian energy group Equinor said on Friday it had filed a civil suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging a U.S. Department of the Interior order to suspend its Empire Wind project.

"As part of that case, Empire plans to seek a preliminary injunction and allow construction to continue while the litigation proceeds," Equinor added.

Last week, the Trump administration suspended leases for five large offshore wind projects that are under construction off the U.S. East Coast over what it called national security concerns, sending shares of offshore wind companies plunging.

The suspension was the latest blow for offshore wind developers that have faced repeated disruptions to their multi-billion-dollar projects under U.S. President Donald Trump, who has said he finds wind turbines ugly, costly and inefficient.

Denmark's Orsted said on Friday it was challenging the U.S. government's suspension of the lease for its Revolution Wind joint venture and would seek a court injunction against the decision to halt its $5 billion offshore wind project.

Equinor said filing for a preliminary injunction is necessary to keep the project on track during this critical execution phase and avoid further commercial and financing impacts if the order remains in effect.

Equinor said Empire Wind is being developed under contract with New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).

The project is more than 60% complete and represents a major investment in U.S. energy infrastructure, jobs and supply chains, the company said.

(Reporting by Anushree Mukherjee in Bengaluru; editing by Edward Tobin)