Norfolk waterfront project removes offshore wind in revised federal bid

After the Trump administration pulled federal funding for an offshore wind project in Norfolk, developers have dropped wind-related components from a revised application and shifted the project toward shipbuilding and maritime industries.

Fairwinds Landing, a 111-acre redevelopment at Lambert’s Point, plans to submit a revised application with the Norfolk Economic Development Authority by June 1 to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Port Infrastructure Development Program, according to managing director Mike Hopkins.

The updated proposal removes all offshore wind components from the PIDP grant application project, he said.

The project previously received $39.27 million in federal funding in 2023, during the Biden administration, for the Norfolk Offshore Wind Logistics Port, a component of the broader Fairwinds Landing redevelopment, to help transform part of the marine terminal into an offshore wind logistics facility. The improvements were intended to enhance port capabilities for offshore wind operations and maintenance, heavy-lift operations and cable loading.

Fairwinds Landing was originally designed as a broader maritime operations and logistics hub serving offshore wind, defense and transportation industries in Hampton Roads. Fairwinds Landing LLC, a partnership between Fairlead, The Miller Group and Balicore Construction, is developing the project.

Federal funding for Fairwinds Landing was withdrawn last year when the U.S. Department of Transportation, under President Donald Trump, canceled or terminated $679 million in funding for 12 offshore wind projects nationwide. The department said the move was intended to “ensure federal dollars are prioritized towards restoring America’s maritime dominance and preventing waste,” part of a broader shift in federal policy away from offshore wind and toward fossil fuels and what the administration had described as “traditional forms of energy.”

No construction work on the offshore wind-related components had been completed before the funding was withdrawn, Hopkins said.

Fairwinds Landing now hopes to recapture the grant funding, albeit with a different pitch to the federal government.

Focus on maritime industry

In place of offshore wind, Hopkins said the proposed project now emphasizes shipbuilding and expanding the maritime industrial base, a central tenet of Trump’s “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance” executive order.

The revised plan calls for constructing 1,480 linear feet of new specialized berths to support heavy-lift operations and uncrewed maritime systems, along with the renovation of a 10-acre finger pier that would add more than 2,600 linear feet of berth space for maritime operations in Hampton Roads.

“The strategic vision for Fairwinds Landing is to be a world-class multi-tenant, multi-function maritime logistics facility,” Hopkins said in an email, adding that the site is expected to attract a range of users, including shipbuilding, defense and logistics companies, as well as firms in industries such as nuclear energy and space.

Pier improvements that would have directly supported the operations base for Dominion Energy‘s $11.5 billion Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project are not included in the revised PIDP application, and other components have been modified.

Hopkins said Fairwinds Landing has had discussions with the USDOT’s Maritime Administration (MARAD), focusing on the current administration’s priorities. He described these discussions as “helpful and positive.”

Based on business interest over the past year, Hopkins said the project is expected to support shipbuilding, uncrewed maritime systems, maritime operations and cargo logistics.

Fairwinds Landing expects MARAD to announce grant awards in the fourth quarter of this year. If the project is selected for funding, Hopkins said construction could be completed by 2028.

Norfolk EDA Executive Director Sean Washington said that Fairwinds Landing and the EDA already completed many environmental and compliance requirements before the previous award was rescinded. He said that will mean the construction for the revised project could go to bid much sooner after award than originally.

It remains unclear what role, if any, Fairwinds Landing will play in supporting Dominion‘s CVOW project, which is already under construction and delivering power to the grid, despite federal efforts to halt the project. Once operational, CVOW will consist of 176 wind turbines generating up to 9.5 million megawatt-hours per year, or enough energy to power up to 660,000 homes.

Dominion declined to comment. On Monday, Dominion announced it had entered into an agreement to be acquired by Fortune 200 Florida energy company NextEra Energy in an all-stock transaction worth about $66.8 billion, based on the price of NextEra shares at market close on Friday.