“Godfather of the Wind” warns of President Trump’s attack on renewable energy

Two pioneers of Europe’s modern wind power industry are sounding the alarm over the Trump administration’s clean energy cuts, warning that Washington’s anti-climate policies are part of a broader energy transition agenda.

Denmark’s Henrik Steedsdal, often referred to as the “godfather of wind” for his contributions to advances in the design, manufacture and deployment of wind turbines, and Britain’s Andrew Garrad said President Trump’s war on wind appeared to be a symptom of a broader climate apathy.

Steedsdal is known for developing early design principles for wind turbines and led the installation of the world’s first offshore wind farm in 1991. Meanwhile, Garrad developed computer models to optimize and certify turbine and power plant designs.

“I think Mr. Trump’s approach is indicative of an overall change,” Garrad said, echoing comments made by Steesdal, who opposes the transition from fossil fuels to renewable technologies such as wind and solar.

“We’re facing a change in mood right now. We had a very easy beginning, then there was a huge struggle, then public acceptance, and now the bug is turning around. And that’s something we all have to deal with,” Garrad told CNBC.

Since returning to office earlier this year, US President Donald Trump has actively sought to block the development of high-profile wind power projects. His push to clean up the offshore wind industry includes eliminating stop-work orders and green incentives under former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Control Act.

“Trump has the symptoms, and I mean the extreme symptoms of it, but I think it’s certainly seen in all Western countries, but probably not in other countries. And that’s a big problem,” Garrad said.

“This is not just a wind energy issue,” Garrad said. “It’s a very dangerous thing to make these kinds of changes. And I think this showed that this is a political business…This is a personal decision by a politician who happens to be pretty powerful. And it shocked the world.”

President Trump’s onslaught on the wind industry has hit renewable energy giants’ business models particularly hard. Denmark’s Orsed, the world’s largest offshore wind power group, is a notable example.

Orsted last week reported a net loss of 1.7 billion Danish kroner ($261.8 million) for the July-September period. The result was slightly better than analysts had feared, but it was still significantly lower than the previous year’s profit of 5.17 billion Danish kroner.

The Copenhagen-listed company’s shares have fallen more than 80% from their 2021 highs and hit a new record low in August after the Trump administration ordered the company to halt work on a nearly completed wind farm.

Danish wind turbine company Vestas is also grappling with uncertainty in its industry, in part due to Trump administration policies. When asked about some of these challenges, Vestas CEO Henrik Andersen said the company has a “well-established” supply chain in the United States.

“For us, we see the United States, both our customers and American construction, as part of our core responsibility to support the United States,” Andersen said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Nov. 5.

“I might get a bit of a kick out of it sometimes because not everyone likes the nature of wind turbines, but I generally think that energy drives decision-making and the cost of energy drives decision-making,” he added.

President Trump has repeatedly criticized the deployment of offshore wind turbines, calling them “pathetic” and “expensive” in a recent speech to the United Nations General Assembly.

“What I’m saying is, if we don’t get out of this green energy scam, this country is going to go bankrupt,” President Trump said on September 23. President Trump also said that climate change is “the greatest fraud ever perpetrated on the world.”

Scientists have since criticized President Trump’s characterization of climate change, pointing out that the overwhelming consensus is that climate change is already happening, with record heat waves, floods and hurricanes causing massive economic damage around the world.

Stisdall declined to comment specifically on President Trump’s fight against wind, but said there appears to be a “fundamental misunderstanding” among those who staunchly oppose the energy transition.

“Many people who tend to vote for far-right parties actually benefit from both the job provision and the energy costs of renewable energy,” Steesdal said.

“It’s not an easy thing to fight because a lot of it is instinctive or fundamental in the way this tribe thinks about its approach,” he continued. “Whenever I’m faced with this issue or a discussion about it, I always try to emphasize energy security, job creation, the positive local effects of using renewable energy, and the security it provides in society.”

Stisdall and Garrad spoke to CNBC shortly before being awarded the 2024 Queen Elizabeth Engineering Prize. The award was presented by Charles III during a reception at St James’s Palace in London earlier this month.