New Mexico ranchers butt heads with oil and gas firm

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OIL & GAS

• Northwestern New Mexico ranchers butt heads with Hilcorp Energy over the firm’s allegedly shoddy oil and gas drilling practices on and near their land. (Capital & Main)

• Indigenous advocates call on the Trump administration to cancel a New Mexico oil and gas lease sale and to back off plans to rescind a Biden-era ban on new drilling around the Chaco Culture National Historical Park. (Source NM)

• Santa Barbara County’s supervisors vote to deny transferring Exxon Mobil’s local operating permits to Sable Offshore, dealing another blow to the latter firm’s effort to restart drilling platforms off California’s coast. (E&E News, Santa Barbara Independent)

• The federal Bureau of Land Management plans to auction 20 oil and gas leases covering more than 4,000 acres in Montana and North Dakota in January. (E&E News)

• The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community agrees to settle a lawsuit against BNSF Railway related to oil trains crossing its land. (Seattle Times)

DATA CENTERS

• The developers of the proposed Project Blue data center near Tucson say they are ​“committing to match 100%” of its electricity use with renewable energy following widespread opposition to the facility. (Arizona Daily Star)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Clearway brings online its 140 MW Rosamond South 1 solar-plus-storage project in Kern County, California. (Solar Power World)

• A Washington state public utility agrees to purchase power from Clearway’s 260 MW Royal Slope solar-plus-storage facility under development in Grant County. (Solar Power World)

PUBLIC LANDS

• President Donald Trump nominates former congress member Steve Pearce, a New Mexico Republican, to lead the federal Bureau of Land Management, drawing oil and gas industry praise and advocates’ criticism. (Source NM)

COAL

• A Wyoming economist predicts data center-driven electricity demand increases won’t reverse coal demand’s downward trend, saying the fuel isn’t cost-effective and Trump’s efforts to prop up the industry amount to ​“putting a finger in a dike.” (Cowboy State Daily)

UTILITIES

• Data show Southern California Edison has implemented more fire hazard-mitigation public safety power outages this year than ever before, prompting criticism from residents, officials, and regulators. (Los Angeles Times)

• NV Energy estimates it overcharged Nevada customers by about $65.4 million from 2002 through 2024 in response to an investigation by state utility regulators. (Nevada Current)

STORAGE

• Tucson Electric Power brings online its 200 MW Roadrunner Reserve battery energy storage system in Arizona. (KVOA)

• Some Las Vegas residents push back on Clearway’s proposed 400 MW battery energy storage system over safety concerns. (KTNV)

MINING

• The federal Bureau of Land Management approves Progressive Contracting’s proposed Coyote Mine expansion in Nevada to extract barite, which is used in oil and gas drilling fluids. (E&E News)

• The U.S. Interior Department adds uranium, metallurgical coal, and copper to its critical minerals list, opening up proposed mining projects to accelerated permitting and federal subsidies. (E&E News)

COMMENTARY

• A Wyoming advocate calls on state lawmakers to develop ​“proactive and comprehensive” nuclear energy policy rather than approaching each project in a ​“piecemeal” manner. (WyoFile)

NEW FROM CANARY 

• Chart: China leads the race to build green industrial projects — Maria Gallucci

• NYC’s next mayor Zohran Mamdani has a big climate policy to-do list — Alexander C. Kaufman

• In a boost for offshore wind, New Jersey elects Mikie Sherrill — Clare Fieseler

• In Ohio, hydrogen industry presses on despite federal uncertainty — Kathiann M. Kowalski

• One North Carolina company’s plan for keeping rooftop solar going — Elizabeth Ouzts