Trump orders talks on wind turbine imports, update within 180 days
Key Facts
U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the initiation or continuation of negotiations with foreign trading partners over imports of wind turbines and their parts, according to a presidential proclamation published by the White House. Trump adopted the commerce secretary's finding that these imports pose a "threat to national security," making that assessment the basis for negotiations. The decision covers wind turbines, components and subcomponents, extending the scope of talks to parts used in manufacturing the equipment. The directive followed a U.S. investigation into the national security implications of imports of this equipment, launched on August 13, 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security. The investigation was conducted under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, the bureau said.
In setting out the security rationale, the commerce secretary cited "cybersecurity vulnerabilities" in foreign equipment, according to the text published by the White House. He said these vulnerabilities could allow equipment to be controlled remotely and electricity supplies disrupted, linking technical risks to the continuity of energy supplies. His rationale also included "radar interference" caused by wind turbines and its impact on radar's various applications. The secretary listed aviation and weather forecasting among the areas that could be affected by such interference. He also included defense uses of radar, with the stated rationale encompassing both the risks of operating foreign equipment and the impact of turbines on detection systems.
The move comes in a sector reliant on imported components, with Wood Mackenzie estimating that imports account for about two-thirds of the value of a typical U.S. wind turbine, according to Reuters reporting in August 2025. An analyst at the firm said the United States imports most of the blades used in turbines. The analyst added that it imports all drivetrains, while being self-sufficient in nacelle assembly, according to the same estimates. On domestic manufacturing, the commerce secretary said production capacity for some components, including blades, "has not increased materially." U.S. imports of wind energy equipment totaled $1.7 billion in 2023, according to Wood Mackenzie figures cited by Reuters. At the end of the same year, installed U.S. onshore wind capacity reached 150,492 megawatts, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
On tariffs, the presidential proclamation leaves existing measures on metals unchanged alongside the negotiating process over wind equipment. These measures include tariffs on aluminum, steel and copper, according to the White House. Other national security tariffs also remain unchanged under the proclamation, which states that "nothing in this proclamation modifies" those measures. On wind towers, the U.S. International Trade Commission kept existing duty orders on imports from Canada, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam in place. The commission said "the existing orders on imports of this product" from those countries would remain in effect.
In a separate development predating the current decision, the United States previously halted the Revolution Wind project off Rhode Island, according to a Reuters report published in August of the previous year. The project halt was followed by a 17% drop in shares of Denmark's Orsted. The decline occurred during the Monday session covered by the agency's report on the fallout from the project halt. The next step under the current proclamation is to provide at least one update on the status or outcome of negotiations within 180 days of its issuance. The commerce secretary and the U.S. trade representative will lead talks with foreign partners under the presidential directive. The deadline concerns briefing the president on the progress or outcome of negotiations and does not require talks to conclude by its expiry.