Biden promotes renewable energy transmission projects in Nevada
- The Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management this week said it has advanced two transmission projects proposed by public utility NV Energy that would facilitate more renewable energy development and delivery in Nevada.
- The agency will begin an environmental review for the Greenlink North project, which would span 450 miles to connect Las Vegas to Reno, and release a draft environmental impact statement for the Greenlink West transmission project, which would cover 232 miles from Ely to Yerington.
- The projects will bolster the Biden administration̵[ads1]7;s goal of deploying 25 gigawatts of renewable energy on public lands and water by 2025 and achieving a carbon-free power sector by 2035.
Heavy electric transmission lines at the high-powered Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, located in California’s Mojave Desert at the foot of Clark Mountain and just south of this stateline community on Interstate 15, are seen July 15, 2022, near Primm, Nevada. The Ivanpah system consists of three solar thermal power plants and 173,500 heliostats (mirrors) on 3,500 acres and has a gross capacity of 392 megawatts (MW).
George Rose | Getty Images News | Getty Images
The Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management this week said it has advanced two transmission projects proposed by public utility NV Energy that would facilitate more renewable energy development and delivery in Nevada.
The agency will begin an environmental review for the Greenlink North project, which would span 450 miles to connect Las Vegas to Reno, and release a draft environmental impact statement for the Greenlink West transmission project, which would cover 232 miles from Ely to Yerington.
Once completed, the projects will connect eight gigawatts of clean energy to the western power grid. The plans would bolster the Biden administration’s goal of deploying 25 gigawatts of renewable energy on public lands and water by 2025 and achieving a carbon-free power sector by 2035.
The announcement comes as Congress debates federal energy permitting overhauls, and Sen. Joe Manchin, DW.Va., introduced a measure earlier this month to speed up permitting of both fossil fuel and renewable energy projects.
Transmission projects involve the extension of high-voltage lines that transport renewable energy to populated areas and will play a crucial role in accelerating the transition to clean energy while meeting increasing power needs.
The BLM aims to finalize proposed documents and prepare a decision report for the Greenlink West project by the end of 2024. It will also release draft environmental planning documents for the Greenlink North project for public comment later this year.
“Our public lands have a critical role to play in the clean energy transition,” BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning said in a statement.
The agency said it has approved 35 clean energy projects over the past couple of years, including solar, geothermal and renewables installations, which are expected to generate 8,160 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power more than 2.6 million homes.
Some projects include the SunZia Southwest Transmission Project in New Mexico and construction approval for California’s Sunlight Storage II Battery Storage System. The agency is also evaluating projects such as Utah’s Star Range Solar Project and Nevada’s Bonanza Solar Project.
