Western Energy News is one of five regional services published by the Energy News Network. Today’s edition was compiled by Jonathan Thompson.
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UTILITIES: Arizona regulators reject Salt River Project’s bid to expand a natural gas power plant in a historically Black community in the southeastern part of the state. (12News)
ALSO: NV Energy seeks proposals for renewable power projects of 20 MW or more. (news release)
SOLAR:
• The federal Bureau of Land Management advances a 700 MW solar-plus-storage project proposed for 5,127 acres west of Las Vegas. (news release)
• A California accountant is sentenced to six years in prison and fined $624 million for his role in a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme that involved selling mobile solar generators. (Associated Press)
• A Nevada gold mine plans to construct a 200 MW solar facility to power its operations. (news release)
• A Colorado county joins an effort to start a regional community solar cooperative. (Steamboat Pilot)
GRID: A Colorado power line project exemplifies how transmission buildouts aimed at facilitating wind and solar development are often held up by reluctant landowners and wildlife habitat concerns. (Bloomberg)
WIND: A floating offshore wind installation proposed along the Washington coast would be the West’s largest project of its kind. (E&E News)
STORAGE: A California startup works to scale up its thermal energy storage device that its founder says is “essentially a giant toaster.” (Canary Media)
OIL & GAS:
• The U.S. EPA downgrades Colorado’s urban Front Range ozone pollution from “serious” to “severe,” requiring the state to implement more stringent air quality controls. (Colorado Sun)
• California researchers find historically redlined neighborhoods contain nearly twice as many oil and gas wells as neighborhoods historically considered “desirable.” (Grist)
COAL: Wyoming fossil fuel companies seek state tax breaks even as they reap profits from high commodity prices. (Jackson Hole News & Guide)
HYDROPOWER: Federal officials consider reducing water releases from Glen Canyon Dam this summer to keep reservoir levels above the minimum needed to produce hydroelectricity. (Colorado Sun)
TRANSPORTATION:
• Colorado Democratic lawmakers propose delaying a new gasoline fee’s implementation until after the November election. (Colorado Sun)
• Colorado energy officials say they have completed construction on the first of six electric vehicle fast charging corridors. (news release)
• A Washington state utility installs eight electric vehicle charging stations along a scenic byway in the eastern part of the state. (KNDO)
ELECTRIFICATION: Eugene, Oregon’s city council considers banning natural gas hookups in new construction. (Register-Guard)
LITHIUM: Environmentalists urge federal wildlife officials to extend endangered species protections to a Nevada toad they say is threatened by a proposed lithium project. (news release)
COMMENTARY: A California advocate says a proposed $400 per-vehicle fuel cost relief payment disproportionately benefits the wealthy and stymies climate goals. (CalMatters)
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