A US court orders Greenpeace to pay $345 million to Energy Transfer, slashing an earlier award but delivering a major blow to the environmental movement.
WASHINGTON: A North Dakota court has ordered Greenpeace to pay $345 million in damages to the US oil pipeline operator Energy Transfer.
The ruling finalises a key phase in the explosive, years-long legal battle over protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline nearly a decade ago.
Judge James Gion cut the original jury award of over $660 million in half, determining some damages had been counted twice.
The Dallas-based energy conglomerate accused Greenpeace of orchestrating violence and defamation during the pipeline’s controversial construction.
A jury last year sided with the company, citing charges including trespass, nuisance, conspiracy and deprivation of property access.
Greenpeace categorically rejects the accusations, denouncing the proceedings as abusive and a means to silence dissent.
“This legal fight is far from over,” Kristin Casper, Greenpeace International general counsel, said in a statement.
Legal experts say the judgment could have far-reaching implications for protest mobilisation and advocacy movements globally.
Michael Gerrard, director of Columbia Law School’s climate change law centre, called the judgment “devastating”.
“It is very bad not only for Greenpeace, but for the global environmental movement,” he told AFP.
Greenpeace has indicated its intention to appeal and has repeatedly stated it cannot pay hundreds of millions of dollars.
Energy Transfer, however, has objected to the halving of its award.
The case stems from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s historic protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline from 2016 to 2017.
The demonstrations saw hundreds arrested and injured, drawing international attention and UN concerns over Indigenous sovereignty.
Energy Transfer CEO Kelcy Warren, a major donor to former President Donald Trump, was open about his motivations in suing.
His “primary objective”, he said in interviews, was not just financial compensation but to “send a message”.
Greenpeace maintains it played only a small and peaceful role in the movement, which was led by Native Americans.
The NGO announced plans in 2025 to counter-sue Energy Transfer in the Netherlands, seeking compensation for its legal costs.
