Trump chaos paralyzes clean energy permitting

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Western Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each morning.

CLEAN ENERGY

• A clean energy trade association says chaos within the Trump administration has virtually paralyzed solar and wind permitting on federal and even some private lands even though the Republican party espouses an ​“all of the above” energy platform. (Heatmap)

• A firm says successful results at its southwestern New Mexico geothermal well show conventional resources can produce more energy than previously believed. (Think GeoEnergy)

SOLAR

• Washington state officials say the Trump administration has blocked the state’s access to about $150 million in federal funds for a program aimed at bringing solar to more than 900,000 low-income households. (Washington State Standard)

• The imminent premature closure of the Ivanpah solar plant in eastern California renews debate over the U.S. Energy Department’s loan program’s success record. (E&E News, subscription)

• Arizona Public Service agrees to purchase power from a 300 MW solar-plus-storage facility under development in the southwestern part of the state. (news release)

CLIMATE

Wyoming lawmakers table ​“make carbon dioxide great again” legislation aimed at blocking efforts to capture and sequester greenhouse gas emissions from coal and gas plants. (WyoFile)

FOSSIL FUELS

• Oil and gas operators step back on drilling plans in Colorado as state regulators bolster rules and residents’ and advocates’ resistance intensifies. (Capital & Main)

• Advocates say the Trump administration’s bid to ​“unleash American energy” will weaken endangered species protections and open up sensitive federal lands to drilling and mining. (Barrons)

• The U.S. Senate confirms Colorado fossil fuel executive Chris Wright to lead the U.S. Energy Department after he vows to carry out Trump’s ​“energy dominance” agenda. (Colorado Sun)

• China issues retaliatory tariffs on U.S. coal imports, potentially affecting some Western mines. (Utility Dive)

GRID

• California regulators approve new rules aimed at streamlining transmission permitting by reducing redundancy and adjusting environmental review requirements. (Utility Dive)

• Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson establishes a workgroup to evaluate data centers’ energy use and their impacts on the economy, tax revenues and the environment. (StateScoop)

• NV Energy officials say an attempted copper wire theft at a Las Vegas-area substation left several large customers without power. (FOX 5)

NUCLEAR

TerraPower plans to establish a 35,000 square foot nuclear technician training center alongside its planned advanced nuclear reactor in a Wyoming coal community. (Cowboy State Daily) 

COMMENTARY

An Alaska economist says a proposed liquefied natural gas pipeline and export terminal conflicts with lagging efforts to address a looming shortage of the fuel in the state. (Anchorage Daily News)