energy development

The Green River solar and battery project in Emery County is being hailed as the largest of its kind in Utah and the Mountain West. It shows a potential path for the region’s transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the microreactor being developed by Antares Nuclear Inc. at the Idaho National Lab reached “criticality,” meaning it achieved a self-sustaining chain reaction.

The application for preliminary permits is Nature and People First's latest proposal for energy development on tribal land. The federal government denied a similar proposal by the company in 2024.

The canceled rule allowed public property to be leased for restoration in the same way that oil companies lease land for drilling. It was a key part of efforts under former President Joe Biden to refocus the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management.

The Biden administration issued an order in 2023 banning new oil and gas development within 10 miles of the historic site for 20 years. Tribal leaders who had celebrated the move are now concerned about the potential for protections to be rolled back.

The rule adopted last year allowed public property to be leased for restoration in the same way that oil companies lease land for drilling.

The vote by House Republicans helps clear the way for President Donald Trump’s plans to sharply expand mining and drilling on public lands. The Republican-majority Senate must still approve the House action.

Tax credits for solar and wind power were cut from the federal budget bill. Geothermal’s incentives were preserved, keeping the technology on track to boom in the years to come.

Utah has struck several deals this year to bring new nuclear technologies to the state. Part of that is a lease for enrichment at Camp Williams, as well as test reactors in Emery County.

Environmental reviews of mining operations normally take months or years. But after President Donald Trump declared a “national energy emergency,” it took just 11 days for the Bureau of Land Management to approve the Velvet-Wood uranium mine's plan to resume operations in San Juan County.

In an 8-0 decision with Justice Neil Gorsuch recused, the court endorsed a limited interpretation of environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act.

Waxy crude oil drawn from the Uinta Basin is at record high levels — the vast majority of the state’s 65.1 million barrels produced in 2024 — and is the driver behind Utah’s recent uptick in energy exports.