COAL: Wyoming is at a crossroads where it needs to start laying the groundwork for a post-coal economy, but ongoing political inertia is getting in the way. (Energy News Network)
ALSO: Wyoming lawmakers revive calls for a tax on wind and solar generation to help the state’s struggling budget. (Casper Star Tribune)
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SOLAR: Montana’s Supreme Court rules state regulators violated state and federal laws against rate discrimination in granting NorthWestern Energy’s request to cut rates it pays to small solar projects. (KXLH)
NUCLEAR: Citing cost concerns, a Northern Utah city withdraws from participating in a next-generation nuclear power plant and another city is considering doing the same. (Deseret News)
NATURAL GAS: The CEO of California’s grid operator says an extension to keep four of the state’s gas-fired power plants open could be necessary if enough new power supplies are not brought online next year. (Los Angeles Times)
PUBLIC LANDS:
• Two new lawsuits are filed opposing the Trump administration’s plan to allow oil and gas leasing along much of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge‘s coastal plain. (Associated Press)
• Conservation groups file a legal action opposing oil and gas development in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. (E&E News, subscription)
• A Wyoming Outdoor Council official questions why parcels once deemed unsuitable for leasing are now being included in the Bureau of Land Management’s December sale. (Casper Star Tribune)
OIL & GAS:
• Colorado’s two top oil and gas producing counties are questioning the authority of state regulators to establish minimum standards. (Greeley Tribune)
• New Mexico’s Environment Department says it doesn’t have the authority to deny permits for oil and gas facilities over ozone concerns. (New Mexico Political Report)
HYDROGEN: A bipartisan group of California lawmakers push to release $20 million in state funds allocated for building hydrogen fuelling stations. (H2 View)
GRID: Disagreement continues on the origin of a grid battery fire in Arizona last year that ended in an explosion. (Greentech Media)
UTILITIES: Pacific Northwest utilities are working on a new model of regional coordination in sharing resources in a bid to overcome the threat of power shortages. (Utility Dive)
COMMENTARY:
• The former chair of California’s grid operator says the state’s power grid needs additional generation in reserve and more storage that can dispatch energy for longer periods of time. (CalMatters)
• A New Mexico think tank fellow says the state’s oil and gas industry has created a dependency model that keeps New Mexico from being its best self. (KRWG)