GRID: The federal Bureau of Land Management greenlights the 732-mile TransWest Express transmission project stretching from a planned 3,000 MW wind facility in southern Wyoming to southern Nevada. (The Hill)

ALSO:
• A firm plans to establish a $40 million power grid-hardening cable manufacturing facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (Utility Dive)
• The Western Area Power Administration joins the California grid operator’s Western Energy Imbalance Market. (Public Power)

NUCLEAR: An environmental group sues to block Pacific Gas & Electric’s bid to continue operating the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in California beyond its scheduled 2025 retirement. (Associated Press)

OIL & GAS:
• A Colorado county rejects a proposed six-month oil and gas development moratorium that would have delayed a state-approved 174-well drilling project. (CPR)
• A Colorado environmental group finds oil and gas-related spills in the state jumped 16% between 2021 and last year. (Colorado Newsline)
• California regulators release a map illustrating hazardous material fallout from a November Bay Area refinery malfunction. (Los Angeles Times)
• An Alaska Indigenous group praises a global insurance firm for refusing to underwrite new oil and gas drilling projects in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Common Dreams) 

NATURAL GAS: Colorado officials nix a state land lease for a Utah company’s proposed 50 MW natural gas power plant after environmentalists criticize the project. (Colorado Sun)

SOLAR: The federal Bureau of Land Management proposes auctioning four parcels totaling 23,675 acres in the Amargosa Desert in Nevada for solar energy development. (news release)

HYDROPOWER: The Biden administration proposes options for cutting Colorado River water consumption to maintain hydropower generating capacity at Glen Canyon and Hoover Dams. (Los Angeles Times)

MICROGRIDS: California regulators approve a $200 million incentive program supporting microgrid development in wildfire- and blackout-prone communities. (RTO Insider, subscription)

UTILITIES: California’s investor-owned utilities propose restructuring rate systems by adding an income-based flat fee to bills to comply with a new state law. (Los Angeles Times)

GEOTHERMAL: A company proposes a utility-scale geothermal power facility in the Denver-Julesburg oil and gas field in northeastern Colorado. (news release) 

HYDROGEN:
• California researchers develop a method of generating hydrogen fuel from seawater without producing large amounts of harmful byproducts. (news release)  
• A California startup works to develop hydrogen fuel cells to power airplanes. (The Sun)

CLIMATE: A commission established by Oregon lawmakers finds the state has failed to meet greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets for two consecutive years. (Oregonian)

DATA CENTERS: Microsoft agrees to shift from evaporative cooling at its data centers in Arizona to more energy-intensive technologies to reduce water consumption. (Register)

ELECTRIFICATION: The Port of San Diego plans to install infrastructure allowing ships to plug into the electrical grid while at berth to reduce diesel engine use and resulting pollution. (San Diego Union-Tribune)

COAL: A Wyoming startup develops methods of making graphite and carbon fiber from coal, which it says is cheaper than petroleum-based materials. (Wyoming Public Media)

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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.