REM: Renewables industry takes a hit with Trump win

Newly elected President Donald Trump will take office on January 20, a day when he has said he will end offshore wind and start rolling back the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which provides generous tax credits for clean energy.

As America woke on Wednesday, November 6, to the news of the Trump victory, after a neck and neck race with Vice President Kamala Harris, stocks surged. The Dow soared more than 1,300 points, or 3% in morning trading on November 6, reaching a new high. 

But in Europe, shares in the major European wind turbine manufacturers Vestas and Nordex had fallen sharply. On the other hand, Siemens Energy, which is not just renewable energy, saw its share price increase. Renewables major Ørsted also saw its share prices slump, as did Spanish developer Iberdrola. The US markets, where wind turbine manufacturer GE Vernova is traded, had yet to open.

The win of Trump, a Republican, was accompanied by Republicans taking control of the Senate, which Democrats had controlled. They also look likely to retain control of the House of Representatives, giving the party the ability to turn the tables on clean energy – if desired – and to back fossil fuels fully.

Trump has expressed open hostility to wind power and said he would stop offshore wind on “day one”. He has said that wind power causes cancer, is “bullshit”, raises the price of bacon and is pricey and unreliable.

If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping the clean energy sector then please click here for NewsBase’s Renewable Energy Monitor.