Focus
Biden designates two new California national monuments, protecting 848K acres
The Center Square – January 7
President Joe Biden has designated two more national monuments in California, spanning 848,000 acres - the Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument. The Chuckwalla National Monument creates the Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor - the largest corridor of protected land in the United States, covering 18 million acres that stretch around 600 miles. The designations only apply to federal lands, not state or private lands, so it will not affect existing rights and will allow for other activities, including “the construction and expansion of electric transmission and distribution within the monument to transport clean energy to western cities,” according to the White House fact sheet.
News
Biden signs executive order to ensure power for AI data centers
Reuters – January 14
President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Tuesday to provide federal support to address massive energy needs for fast-growing advanced artificial intelligence data centers, the White House said. The order calls for leasing federal sites owned by Defense and Energy departments to host gigawatt-scale AI data centers and new clean power facilities to address enormous power needs on a short time frame.
New Jersey offshore wind industry faces new lawsuit and Trump executive order
Asbury Park Press – January 14
A federal lawsuit and a planned executive order from Donald Trump are two of the latest attempts to block New Jersey’s offshore wind plans. An anti-offshore wind organization recently sued a group of federal agencies and Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, a company preparing to build New Jersey’s first offshore wind power project. The industry faces another threat. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, who represents southern New Jersey, announced he was helping Trump draft an executive order that would halt offshore wind work along the East Coast.
Projects
Massive underground air battery project lands $1.76B DOE award
Canary Media – January 13
Compressed-air energy storage, a decades-old but rarely deployed technology that can store massive amounts of energy underground, could soon see a modern rebirth in California’s Central Valley. On January 9, the Biden administration offered a $1.76 billion conditional loan guarantee for GEM A-CAES, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hydrostor. That federal backing will help secure financing for the Willow Rock advanced compressed-air energy storage project planned near the town of Rosamond in eastern Kern County.
EDP Renewables North America unveils Sandrini I & II solar farm in Southern California
Renewable Energy Magazine – January 8
Renewable energy developer EDP Renewables North America has unveiled the Sandrini I & II solar farm in Kern County. The solar farm includes the 200 MW Sandrini I project, which has a 15-year power purchase agreement with Shell Energy North America, and 100 MW Sandrini II project, which has a 15-year PPA with Redwood Coast Energy Authority. Both phases were commissioned in Q4 2024.
Floating solar project overlooks skiing capital of Utah
Solar Power World – January 14
The first floating solar project built in Utah is located on a reservoir atop a mountain at an elevation of 7,000 ft. This 587.5 kW solar project is powering a water treatment facility serving Park City, a skiing destination that draws millions of visitors annually.
California startup strikes deal with data center customer to deploy underground SMRs
Power Engineering – January 7
Using its concept of underground small modular reactors (SMRs), California-based startup Deep Fission has reached an agreement to help power Endeavour Energy’s expanding data center portfolio. The companies have committed to co-developing 2 GW of nuclear energy to power Endeavour’s edge data centers, with the first reactors expected to be operational in 2029.
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