OIL & GAS: Exxon Mobil says it plans to reach net-zero emissions by 2030 at its Permian Basin operations by ending routine flaring, electrifying equipment and improving methane leak detection and capture. (New York Times)

ALSO:
• Hawaii orders the U.S. Navy to suspend operations at its leak-plagued Red Hill fueling facility, install a water treatment system at a contaminated well and defuel the tanks within 30 days. (Hawaii News Now)  
• Wyoming regulators are poised to relax oil and gas wastewater discharge limits and monitoring requirements for an energy company that exceeded those limits in 2020. (WyoFile)

UTILITIES:
• Public Service Company of New Mexico and Avangrid officials want to present their case directly and in person to state regulators who are set to vote this month on the utilities’ proposed merger. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
• Pacific Power says 14 Northwest communities it services are using renewable energy to power holiday light displays. (Fox26)

NUCLEAR:
• Climate activists, scientists and elected officials gather in San Luis Obispo to protest the planned 2025 closure of Diablo Canyon nuclear plant. (KCBX)
• The U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear a California watchdog’s bid to stop decommissioning work at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. (Bloomberg Law, subscription) 

TRANSPORTATION:
• Union Pacific Railroad aims to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, but officials say battery-powered long-haul locomotives are not yet ready for deployment. (Trains)
• Montana awards grants for the construction of electric vehicle charging stations along major highways and at the entrance to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks. (Montana Public Radio)

HYDROPOWER:
• A Montana hydroelectric dam malfunction cuts flows to a stretch of the upper Madison River, leaving a popular trout fishery perilously low on water. (Montana Free Press)
• Seattle City Light says it will study potentially removing three hydroelectric dams that environmental advocates say harm salmon. (Seattle Times)

CLIMATE:
• A Nature Conservancy study finds extreme heat will cost Phoenix billions of dollars in lost economic production in coming decades if the region does not embark on major tree planting and cool roof installation. (Arizona Republic)  
• A massive rain storm inundates Hawaii and leaves tens of thousands of people without power in Honolulu. (CBS News)

PUBLIC LANDS: Utah officials prepare to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Biden administration’s restoration of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, which withdrew those lands from oil, gas and coal leasing. (E&E News)

COMMENTARY:
• West Coast utility officials say expanding the Western Energy Imbalance Market to allow for day-ahead trading would enhance reliability, save money and reduce emissions. (Utility Dive)
• A Wyoming engineer warns state leaders that even if carbon capture proves technologically feasible, retrofitting aging coal plants with it doesn’t make economic sense. (WyoFile) 

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Jonathan P. Thompson

Jonathan hails from southwestern Colorado and has been writing about the land, cultures, and communities of the Western United States for more than two decades. He compiles the Western Energy News digest. He is the author of three books, a contributing editor at High Country News, and the editor of the Land Desk, an e-newsletter that provides coverage and context on issues critical to the West.