US President Donald Trump holds an executive order after signing it during an indoor inauguration parade at Capital One Arena on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States.
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The renewable energy giants seem relatively sanguine about US President Donald Trump’s anti-wind policies, describing the process of replacing fossil fuels with electricity products as “absolutely unstoppable”.
Trump, who promised a “new golden age” for America in his inaugural address on Monday, quickly took aim at low-carbon energy initiatives.
In a widely anticipated stand-alone executive order, the president temporarily suspended new or renewed leases for offshore and onshore wind projects and banned the leasing of wind power projects on the outer continental shelf.
“We’re not going to do the wind thing. Big ugly windmills, they destroy your neighborhood,” Trump told supporters at the Capital One Area in Washington on Monday. He previously described wind turbines as an economic and environmental “disaster”.
The moves were part of a much broader energy offensive designed to “unleash” already booming oil and gas production. This included declaring a national energy emergency, promoting fossil fuel drilling in Alaska, and signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the historic Paris Agreement.
Joe Kaeser, chairman of the supervisory board of Siemens Energyone of the world’s biggest renewables players, seemed unfazed by Trump’s sweeping energy agenda. In fact, Kaeser considered the policies a “slight plus” for the German energy technology group.
Shares of Siemens Energy jumped more than 8% on Wednesday morning, hitting a new 52-week high.
“We have to look at what’s behind all the executive orders and policies. So far, I believe there are many areas where Siemens Energy actually benefits greatly,” Kaeser told CNBC’s Dan Murphy at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting ( WEF) in Davos. , Switzerland on Tuesday.
There will be uncertainty for low-carbon energy sectors such as onshore and offshore wind, Kaeser said, before adding that Trump’s measures were unlikely to directly affect Siemens Energy. That’s partly because roughly 80% of the firm’s wind market is in Europe, Kaeser said.
“So I believe this does not move the needle. I am much more concerned about the European economies and how they deal with a very powerful nation, with a very powerful concept. We may like it or not, because there are some nationalist stuff, but if we look at it from the point of view of the American people, we’d better do something,” Kaeser said.
Beyond onshore and offshore wind, Kaeser said Siemens Energy was well positioned to capitalize on a “booming” electrification market.
“Think about data centers, artificial intelligence, we have wait times now for big gas turbines. In fact, customers are coming in and saying, hey can I make a reservation and I’ll pay you for a reservation? Just think for that. It hasn’t happened for a long time,” Kaeser said.
“I believe the era of electrification has just begun. Whether it’s gas turbines, wind turbines, solar turbines or something else, we have everything, and the customers decide in the end. And one thing I believe should not be underestimated, the White House is not buying LOT [but] the customer does,” he added.
‘Very, very optimistic’
Spanish renewable energy giant Iberdrola was similarly positive about the path to full electrification, describing the shift away from fossil fuels as “absolutely unstoppable”.
“We are seeing that we are probably at the best moment for electrification,” Ignacio Galán, executive chairman of Iberdrola, told CNBC at WEF on Tuesday.
Galán cited increasing global demand for electric data centers, low-emission vehicles, and cooling and heating applications.
A logo on the nacelle of a wind turbine at the Martin de la Jara wind farm, operated by Iberdrola SA, in the Martin de la Jara district of Sevilla, Spain, Friday, April 21, 2023.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
“All these things require more electricity 24 hours a day. Our business in the United States is mainly in this area, which is networks … and the regulation is up to the state authority, so I think it is not affected at all. ” Galán said.
“Depending on the legislation, we will make more or less investments in another part of our business,” he added, referring to Trump’s energy policy.
“We are very, very optimistic about the United States and the future,” Galán said.
Problems with wind energy
Shares of several European wind energy giants fell shortly after Trump took aim at wind energy plans.
Denmark’s Orsted, which recently announced an impairment charge of about $1.7 billion on US projects, fell 4.4% on Wednesday morning, extending heavy losses from the previous session.
The fast-growing offshore wind sector has endured a difficult time in recent years, hampered by rising costs, supply chain disruption and higher interest rates.
Windmills pictured during a press moment of Orsted, Tuesday 06 August 2024, at the drone freight of heavy cargo loads to the offshore wind turbines at the Borssele 1 and 2 wind farm in Zeeland, Holland.
Nicolas Maeterlinck | Afp | Getty Images
Artem Abramov, head of new energy research at Rystad Energy, said Trump’s energy agenda basically means the likelihood of any new US offshore development has dropped to zero – at least for now.
“The US currently has about 2.4 gigawatts (GW) of advanced-stage offshore wind developments that have made the final investment decision and are under construction, which are unlikely to be affected by the order,” Abramov said in a research note published on Tuesday.
“Moderate risk amid an unfavorable investment climate is present for 10.5 GW of projects that have secured the necessary permits but have not made investment decisions,” Abramov said.
“The remaining 25 GW of early-stage projects are unlikely to see any progress under the current administration,” he added.
— CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed to this report.