Danish wind giant Ørsted is caught in a perfect storm of hostile US politics, high interest rates, and persistent supply chain woes, a combination that has ignited a major corporate crisis. The company’s stock has plummeted to an all-time low after it announced an emergency $9 billion fundraising effort.
The final element that tipped the company into crisis was the Trump administration’s anti-wind agenda. A review of all wind permits has torpedoed Ørsted’s business model of selling project stakes to finance its work, a plan it had for its US eastern seaboard developments.
This political pressure cooker is intensifying economic problems that have plagued the industry since the pandemic. The rising cost of materials and money has already made building new projects far more expensive, and the added political risk has made them nearly un-investable in the short term.
CEO Rasmus Errboe acknowledged this “extraordinary situation,” framing the $9 billion capital raise as a necessary step to reinforce the company’s financial stability. Backed by the Danish government, Ørsted hopes to ride out the storm and salvage its ambitious projects in the US and beyond.