Enel ordered to tear down wind farm in the U.S. and pay damages

A U.S. judge has ordered Enel to remove a wind farm built on the Osage Mineral Estate in Osage County, Oklahoma and was ordered to pay for the damages created. The judgment concludes over a decade of litigation, with the court finding Enel and its subsidiaries guilty of trespass and unauthorized mining activities on tribal lands. 

The 150 megawatts wind farm, which includes 84 turbines and associated infrastructure, was constructed without a proper lease agreement from the Osage Nation, violating both federal and tribal laws regarding the use of the mineral estate, according to the ruling. 

Judge Choe-Groves ruled that the wind farm operators must return the land to its original condition by December 1, 2025, and pay substantial damages to the Osage Nation, as presented in a press release by the United States Attorney's Office. The company should pay around $300,000 for the damages generated.

The case stems from a long-running dispute that began in 2014, when the United States, on behalf of the Osage Nation, filed a lawsuit against the wind farm developers. Enel had leased surface rights for a wind farm spanning 8,400 acres but had not obtained permission to mine Osage minerals beneath the land. 

In addition to the removal order, the defendants have been ordered to compensate the Osage Nation and the United States for attorney fees and costs incurred during the lengthy legal battle.