California regulators greenlight novel long-duration energy storage

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STORAGE

• California regulators approve Hydrostor’s proposed 500 MW Willow Rock underground compressed-air energy storage project in rural Kern County, a major step forward for the novel long-duration technology. (Canary Media)

• Terra-Gen brings online two battery energy storage systems totaling 129 MW of capacity in San Bernardino County, California. (news release)

• A Los Angeles County firefighters’ labor union urges officials to ban grid-scale battery energy storage systems near residential areas or occupied fire stations. (KHTS)

TRANSPORTATION

• Canada EV manufacturer GreenPower Motor Company plans to establish a factory and its U.S. corporate headquarters in southern New Mexico. (KRQE)

• Colorado advocates slam state transportation officials for claiming that a proposed Denver-area interstate highway expansion would not lead to increased greenhouse gas emissions. (Colorado Sun)

CLEAN ENERGY

• SOLON brings online its Arizona’s largest behind-the-meter solar installation at a water plant in Tucson. (news release)

UTILITIES

• Democratic California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer says if elected he would push to hold utilities accountable for sparking wildfires and rein in their political power. (Sacramento Bee)

DATA CENTERS

• Marana, Arizona’s town council approves a zoning change for two parcels, clearing the way for a proposed 550 to 750 MW data center’s development. (Arizona Luminaria)

OIL & GAS

• Valero says it will keep importing gasoline into northern California after shuttering its Benicia refinery in April rather than exiting the market altogether. (Reuters)

• A federal Bureau of Land Management sale of 31 oil and gas leases in New Mexico and Oklahoma brings in $327 million, setting a record high for per-acre bid amounts. (E&E News)

• A federal Bureau of Land Management ​“replacement” oil and gas lease auction in Colorado draws no bids on any of the 23 offered parcels, indicating a lack of industry interest in areas outside the Permian Basin. (CPR)

• A federal Bureau of Land Management oil and gas lease auction in Wyoming draws bids on only 1% of the offered acreage. (Wyoming Public Radio)

PUBLIC LANDS

• Advocates urge the U.S. Senate to reject the Trump administration’s pick to lead the federal Bureau of Land Management, citing Steve Pearce’s deep involvement in the oil and gas industry. (E&E News)

• Congressional appropriators reject the Trump administration’s bid to zero out funding for the federal Bureau of Land Management’s renewable energy office. (E&E News)

RECLAMATION

• A New Mexico lawmaker proposes spending $50 million to clean up abandoned uranium mines, oil and gas operations, and other polluted sites. (Source NM)

• Boulder, Colorado, residents and officials look to monitor air quality around Xcel Energy’s coal ash cleanup at its defunct Valmont Station, saying the utility’s monitoring plan is inadequate. (Boulder Reporting Lab)

NEW FROM CANARY 

• Trump admin’s must-run orders put broken-down coal plants in a bind — Jeff St. John

• EPA plans to give 11 coal plants a free pass on toxic ash disposal — Kari Lydersen

• Chart: How the US electricity mix changed last year — Dan McCarthy

• Offshore wind had a terrible 2025. What can be learned? — Clare Fieseler

• Ohio utility corruption defendants to SCOTUS: Bribes are free speech — Kathiann M. Kowalski