Energy
News
Wyoming Hires Second Powerful Law Firm To Fight Washington's Coal Policies
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon has hired another major law firm to fight anti-coal policies from the Environmental Protection Agency. The firm employs former President Trump's former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.
Pat MaioJuly 18, 2024
Casper's Ur-Energy Sees Boost In Uranium Production
According to regulatory filings on Wednesday, Casper-based Ur-Energy is one of the first major uranium mining players in Wyoming to see evidence of stronger demand by electric utilities of its ore, which is needed to power nuclear power plants.
Pat MaioJuly 18, 2024
Ramaco Resources Preparing To Build Plant To Transform Coal
Ramaco Resources is close to starting work on a pilot demonstration plant that will convert coal mined from a Ranchester mine into strategic rare earth minerals. They estimate they'll be pulling up to 2 million tons of coal annually out of the old Brook mine by 2026.
Pat MaioJuly 17, 2024
Mining Company Sees 'Paws-Abilities' In Growing Cat Litter Business
Wyoming's sodium bentonite companies produce over 70% of the world’s supply, with privately held Wyo-Ben going up against larger rivals like Mineral Technologies and Haliburton’s Bentonite Performance.
Pat MaioJuly 16, 2024
Australian Firm Test Drilling On $456 Million Rare Earths Project Near Wheatland
American Rare Earths' mining project near Wheatland, which could have one of the richest rare earths deposits in the world, on Monday said it had begun test drilling.
Pat MaioJuly 15, 2024
No End In Sight For Wyoming’s New Uranium Rush
A rush for producing Wyoming uranium continues with no end in sight. The latest in the mix is an exploration company from Canada that hopes to muscle its way into the state’s Shirley Basin to possibly attract takeover interest.
Pat MaioJuly 11, 2024
Controversial $500M Wind Farm Gets Go-Ahead After Heated Closed-Door Meeting
The controversial $500 million Rail Tie wind farm in Albany County got the go-ahead from Wyoming regulators Wednesday. Things reportedly got heated at times as the developer and activists met behind closed doors for hours.
Pat MaioJuly 10, 2024
BLM May Limit Plan For 600,000 Acres Of CO2 Storage For Wyoming Ammonia Plant
A Wyoming BLM assessment could severely limit a massive 600,000-acre carbon dioxide storage plan. The CO2 storage would be needed to build an industrial-scale coal-to-ammonia plant in southwest Wyoming.
Pat MaioJuly 10, 2024
Spanish Company To Develop Huge Wind Farm North Of Cheyenne
Spanish energy giant Repsol has plans to build a huge 500- to 600-megawatt wind farm northwest of Cheyenne, Cowboy State Daily confirmed Tuesday. It’s the same company that bought the controversial Rail Tie wind project outside of Laramie in the spring.
Pat MaioJuly 09, 2024
In Major Policy Shift, Wyoming Redefines Who Can Bid On State Oil And Gas Leases
Wyoming has changed its rules to discourage environmental groups from attempting to lock up state oil and gas leases. That means the Wyoming Outdoor Council can’t bid in this week's state-run oil and gas lease auction.
Pat MaioJuly 08, 2024
Wyoming Uranium Producer Ramps Up To Meet $100M-Plus Sale To European Buyer
Strata Energy is accelerating its uranium production from Wyoming’s Powder River Basin with plans to ramp up to 2 million pounds annually. The company is expected to double its workforce to sell $88 million to $117 million worth of uranium to a European buyer.
Pat MaioJuly 08, 2024
Oil And Gas Producers Say Outdoors Council Bids Up State Lease Sale To Inflate Costs
Casper-based Kirkwood Cos. Is crying foul after it says the Wyoming Outdoor Council duped the company into paying much more for an oil and gas lease by bidding it up during a state-run sale.
Pat MaioJuly 05, 2024
Road Deal Clears Way To Build Giant 1.2 Million Panel Cheyenne Solar Farm
Enbridge will pick up $12 million of the $14.5 million needed to upgrade a road south of Cheyenne to access its giant 1.2 million panel solar farm south of Cheyenne. The deal clears the way to start construction on the $1.2 billion project.
Pat MaioJuly 05, 2024
Gordon Issues Order To Keep Environmental Activists From Impacting Wyoming Lease Sale
In preparation for next week’s oil and gas lease auction, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon has signed an emergency order to help keep environmental activist groups from driving up bids and taking energy-rich leases from developers.
Pat MaioJuly 04, 2024
Kansas Company Planning Gigantic 600,000-Acre Carbon Capture Project In SW Wyoming
A Kansas-based company is moving forward to build a 600,000-acre carbon capture project in underground caverns in Lincoln, Sweetwater and Uinta counties in southwest Wyoming.
Pat MaioJuly 04, 2024
Construction Delays, Inflation Push Back Opening Of $53 Million Upton Rare Earths Plant
Rare Element Resources Ltd. has delayed the July opening of its rare earths plant in Upton, Wyoming. Construction delays and 21% inflation will push the opening back at least two months.
Pat MaioJuly 02, 2024
Energy Giant Files Permit To Build $233 Million Wind Farm Near Glenrock
Virginia-based AES Corp. says it’s going to build a $233.4 million wind farm near Glenrock, Wyoming. They claim it will bring 200 jobs and produce enough electricity to power 44,000 homes.
Pat MaioJuly 02, 2024
Wyoming Oil And Gas Producers Fear Tiny Lease Sales ‘The New Normal’
Thursday’s tiny federal oil and gas lease sale in Wyoming was a throwback to pre-2000 levels, and given the political climate for fossil fuels, state producers fear this may be “the new normal.”
Pat MaioJune 28, 2024
Huge 326,000 Panel Wyoming Solar Farm May Be Delayed Over Road Worries
A huge 326,000 solar panel project in Goshen County may encounter delays in construction because of a recent change in road and bridge permitting requirements and concerns about tearing up local roads.
Pat MaioJune 28, 2024
Wyoming Seeks To Beat China To Become Top Rare Earths Producer
The state of Wyoming is financing rare earths mining projects that could eventually become the largest in the United States. The goal is to loosen China’s grip on the market.
Pat MaioJune 27, 2024
Huge Insurance Bills Don't Stop Solar Projects In Wyoming's Hail Alley
Catastrophic hailstorms haven’t been kind to solar developers, and insurance companies have noticed. Premiums to insure the large solar projects planned for Wyoming's Hail Alley continue to rise.
Pat MaioJune 26, 2024
Legal Mess Ties Up $500 Million Wyoming Wind Farm Project
An influential seven-member industrial siting group in Wyoming plans an early July meeting to sort out a legal mess that could determine the future of the $500 million Rail Tie wind farm development in Albany County.
Pat MaioJune 24, 2024
Military Could Invest In Mining Critical Minerals In Wyoming
The U.S. military has a huge interest in rare earth materials, something Wyoming has an abundance of. For instance, the U.S. Air Force’s F-35 stealth fighter takes 850 pounds of rare earths to build.
Pat MaioJune 23, 2024
Wyoming's Uranium Mining Boom Draws Another Foreign-Owned Exploration Firm
Global Uranium Corp., an exploration company with mining operations in Canada, has become the latest foreign-owned company to expand to Wyoming to take advantage of a uranium mining boom.
Pat MaioJune 19, 2024
In 954-Page Letter, Wyoming’s Powder River Basin Blasts BLM’s War On Coal
The top elected county officials of nearly 70,000 people who live in Wyoming’s coal heartland of the Powder River Basin blasted the BLM on Tuesday for its rules to end coal in a massive 954-page letter submitted to the agency.
Pat MaioJune 18, 2024
Hageman Says She’ll Invite Trump Back To Wyoming To Visit Coal Country
U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman was back in Wyoming on Tuesday visiting the coal-rich Powder River Basin. Hageman said she will be inviting former President Trump back to Wyoming as he, unlike the current president, is a friend of coal.
Pat MaioJune 18, 2024
Millions More Given To Build Tiny Nuclear Reactors In Wyoming
The Wyoming Energy Authority has approved second phase of a $10 million effort by BWXT Technologies to determine the viability of building tiny nuclear power plants in the state.
Pat MaioJune 18, 2024
Already A World Leader in Helium Production, ExxonMobil In Wyoming Plans To Expand
One of the largest producers of helium in the world comes from the ExxonMobil plant in LaBarge. Now the facility, which provides 20% of the world’s supply, is set to expand and could double its workforce in the next year.
Pat MaioJune 17, 2024
Wyoming's Loneliest EV Chargers Sits In The Middle Of Nowhere
Many may ask why the heck someone would put a solar-powered EV charger in the middle of nowhere in central Wyoming. Turns out it's left from Rivian's testing of EV trucks in the rugged and brutal Cowboy State terrain and weather.
Andrew RossiJune 15, 2024
Billionaire Bill Gates Lands In Kemmerer For Nuclear Plant, Then Plays Poker
Billionaire Bill Gates flew into Kemmerer on Monday for the groundbreaking ceremony of the $4 billion Natrium nuclear reactor project. After the ceremony Gates played Texas hold 'em with some locals.
Pat MaioJune 10, 2024
Hageman: Boulder Should Remove Gas Stations & Pavement Because Fossil Fuels Are Evil
Attending the Wyoming Mining Association convention, Rep. Harriet Hageman said if fossil fuels are so evil then liberal "la-la land" cities like Boulder should just give them up proactively. Gas stations and pavement should be removed, she suggested.
Pat MaioJune 07, 2024
‘We Need To Fight Back:’ Wyoming Takes First Step In New Action Against EPA Over Coal Rule
The State of Wyoming unveiled the beginnings of a plan Friday to pursue a new legal action against the Environmental Protection Agency, which wants to kill off coal- and natural-gas fired power plants.
Pat MaioJune 07, 2024
Wyoming Miners Say U.S. Not Getting Truth About Coal, So They’ll Have To Do It
One of the underlying themes of this week’s Wyoming Mining Association convention in Cody is that the American public is being fed misinformation about coal,so it's up to them to do something about it.
Pat MaioJune 07, 2024
Coal Companies Say Claim They’re Not There For Wyoming Miners A Cheap Shot
Coal industry leaders meeting in Cody for the Wyoming Mining Association's annual convention Thursday say cheap shots from Campbell County commissioners who don't feel they're engaged with folks in the Powder River Basin are unfair.
Pat MaioJune 06, 2024
Wyoming Uranium Mining Outfit Expands To Australia For Rare Earths In $140M Deal
Energy Fuels, which is preparing to ramp up its Nichols Ranch uranium mine near Kaycee for production by 2025, has agreed to a $140 million deal to jointly develop a rare earths mining project in Australia.
Pat MaioJune 05, 2024
Biden’s BLM Rule To End Coal Casts Ominous Cloud Over Wyoming’s Coal Country
Coal miners from Wyoming’s Powder River Basin are worried and determined to fight a Biden administration rule to end coal mining there by 2041. They spent part of Tuesday responding, while also bracing to cut spending as coal revenues dwindle.
Pat MaioJune 05, 2024
$1.2 Billion South Cheyenne Solar Project Delayed By Road Upgrade
Enbridge Inc.’s proposed $1.2 billion solar farm development in South Cheyenne has run into a dispute with Laramie County officials over who is pay for a county-owned road needed for huge Microsoft and Meta data centers.
Pat MaioJune 04, 2024
Wyoming Coal Bust Means Budget Cuts Coming For State, Campbell County
Campbell County, located in the heart of the coal-rich Powder River Basin, plans to trim spending by more than $25 million in anticipation of a prolonged coal bust. The State of Wyoming could be short at least $50 million.
Pat MaioJune 03, 2024
Wyoming Solar Farms Want Cows, Pigs And Sheep Roaming Under Panels
Solar farm developers in Wyoming are banking on a menagerie of barnyard animals to graze under hundreds of thousands of panels planned for construction from one end of the state to the other.
Pat MaioJune 01, 2024
How Wyoming Missed The Boat On An Interstate Coal Pipeline Nearly 50 Years Ago
Until the last decade or so, Wyoming’s coal industry did nothing but boom. But the yearslong bust that’s followed has people playing the “what if” game, like what if the state had built a proposed coal pipeline nearly 50 years ago?
Pat MaioMay 31, 2024
Wyoming Files Third Lawsuit Over EPA's Rules Designed To Kill Off Coal Industry
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon announced Thursday that the state has filed a third lawsuit challenging new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency which will destroy the coal industry.
Pat MaioMay 30, 2024
BLM To Hold Wyoming’s Smallest Oil And Gas Lease Auction In 15 Years
The Wyoming office the federal BLM is scheduled to hold an auction for oil and gas leases in June that will be one of the smallest in the Cowboy State in years.
Pat MaioMay 29, 2024
Wyoming To Expand Critical Minerals Permitting To Include Uranium, Rare Earths
With Wyoming positioning to become ground zero for a new U.S. nuclear power revolution, the state is finalizing rules to expand its energy regulatory authority to include uranium and rare earths mining, aka “nuclear source material."
Pat MaioMay 28, 2024
Conservative Advocacy Group Lowers Gas To $2.38 A Gallon At Cheyenne Gas Station
On a nationwide bus tour, conservative activist group Americans for Prosperity gave a $1 discount to motorists filling up at a Cheyenne gas station Sunday, rolling back the price to $2.38 a gallon, what it was at the beginning of the Biden administration.
Pat MaioMay 26, 2024
Life Will Never Be The Same For Pair Caught In Flash Fire At Wyoming Power Plant
Barely four weeks on the job, electrician Matthew Balcazar and a co-worker were severely burned when a coal-dust combustion erupted in a storage silo at the Dave Johnston power plant near Glenrock, Wyoming.
Pat MaioMay 24, 2024
Visionary Metals May Have A $1 Billion Nickel Claim In Central Wyoming
Lander-based Visionary Metals, whose chief executive has family ties to the famed uranium heartland community of Jeffrey City, is staking a potential $1 billion claim on America’s next big strategic mineral — nickel.
Pat MaioMay 23, 2024
Huge 1.2 Million-Panel Wyoming Solar Farm Gets Green Light To Build
The largest solar power project in Wyoming — a $1.2 billion, 1.2-million panel farm -- on Tuesday was given the green light to start building. It will supply electricity to the incoming data centers which will be built in south Cheyenne.
Pat MaioMay 22, 2024
Crypto, Data Centers, Push for EVs Will Explode The Need For Electricity, Barrasso Says
U.S. Sen. John Barrasso told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that the amount of energy the country will need in five years is going to increase so much, it's like "adding a whole new California."
Pat MaioMay 21, 2024
Firm That Wants To Build Carbon-Sucking Silos In Wyoming Signs Deal With Saudis
Spiritus, a venture capital firm that wants to build a direct air carbon capture project in Wyoming, signed a deal with Saudi-backed Aramco Ventures to develop its technology on a pilot project in the Middle Eastern country.
Pat MaioMay 20, 2024
Can Wyoming Break With Federal Government And Become Energy Independent?
Wyoming legislators are examining an approach to energy independence and ownership of coal- and natural-gas power plants that would directly pit them against the Biden administration’s policy of ending coal production by 2041.
Pat MaioMay 20, 2024
Wyoming Oil And Gas Group Challenges Suffocating EPA, BLM Rules
The Petroleum Association of Wyoming joined with other trade groups this week to file a pair of lawsuits challenging Biden administration rules that could suffocate gas, oil and methane production.
Pat MaioMay 16, 2024
Biden Administration's BLM Issues Rule To Kill Wyoming Coal By 2041
The BLM issued a rule on Thursday that would end coal production in Wyoming's energy-rich Powder River Basin by 2041. Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon said his attorney general will pursue legal options to challenge the rule.
Pat MaioMay 16, 2024
RMP: $116M Electricity Rate Hike For Wyoming Due To Inflation, Coal Disruptions
The president of Rocky Mountain Power says their proposed $116.3 million electricity rate hike for Wyoming residents is due to Inflation and coal market disruptions. This hike would be in addition to an 8.3% increase that went into effect Jan 1
Pat MaioMay 15, 2024
Wyoming's Rare Earths Industry May See Boost from Chinese Tariffs On Imports
Wyoming’s burgeoning rare earths industry may have received a big boost by the federal government with the announcement of $18 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods. The tariffs will affect minerals that Wyoming has a super abundance of.
Pat MaioMay 14, 2024
Combined HF Sinclair Reports 7% Revenue Drop In First Quarter Since Merger
Dallas-based HF Sinclair Corp., formed when HollyFrontier bought Sinclair, reports a 7% drop in revenue in the new company’s first quarterly report. It also predicts an upturn for its namesake Sinclair refinery.
Pat MaioMay 13, 2024
Australia Company Targets 85 Million Pounds Of Uranium In Northeast Wyoming
Australia-based Peninsula Energy has boosted estimates for uranium in northeast Wyoming to nearly 85 million pounds at its three area mines, along with processing yellowcake.
Pat MaioMay 13, 2024
Massive $1.2 Billion Panel Solar Farm Planned For South Cheyenne
The pastoral landscape south of Cheyenne is getting carved up to make way for a $1.2 billion Canadian company's solar farm project that will supply electricity to data centers on the south edge of the city. Not everyone's happy about it.
Pat MaioMay 11, 2024
Wyoming Sues Biden’s EPA Over Coal And Gas Power Plant Rules
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon filed a pair of lawsuits Wednesday and Thursday challenging federal environmental rules that could economically cripple the Cowboy State’s coal and natural gas-fired power plants.
Pat MaioMay 09, 2024
Bill Gates To Be In Kemmerer For Groundbreaking Of TerraPower's Nuclear Plant
Billionaire Bill Gates plans to visit Kemmerer next month for the groundbreaking ceremony of TerraPower's nuclear reactor project, the company’s president said Wednesday. Gates has spent more than $1 billion of his own money on the project so far.
Pat MaioMay 08, 2024
Colorado Company To Ramp Up Production Of Uranium Near Kaycee, Wyoming
Colorado-based Energy Fuels says it’s preparing to ramp up its uranium mine near Kaycee and develop rare earths production that will “be globally competitive.” They're aiming for production of 2 million pounds of uranium next year.
Pat MaioMay 07, 2024
Wyoming’s Powder River Basin Closes In On 9 Billion Tons Of Coal Dug Up
Sometime this summer, Wyoming is expected to reach a major milestone of 9 billion tons of coal dug up out of the Powder River Basin over the last 25 years. Experts predict the 9 billion ton milestone will be reached in July.
Pat MaioMay 06, 2024
Australian Billionaire’s Rare Earths Buying Spree Will Likely Target Wyoming
Wyoming’s rare earths mines have caught the attention of Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who has gone on a global buying spree to acquire ownership in significant mines. Analysts say Wyoming is a prime target because of its world-class deposits.
Pat MaioMay 04, 2024
Wyoming Budget Could Face $50 Million Coal Shortfall In 2025
Wyoming’s budget may see a $50 million shortfall in revenue collection from the state’s coal industry as it moves into 2025, warns Don Richards, co-chairman of the Wyoming Legislative Service Office.
Pat MaioMay 03, 2024
Wyoming May See Next Land Rush For Utility-Sized Solar Farms
Wyoming, with its friendly permitting process to build alternative energy development projects, could see America’s next land rush to build utility-scale solar farms.
Pat MaioMay 03, 2024
Peabody’s Wyoming Coal Mines Report Biggest Production Drop In 10 Years
Peabody Energy Corp., which runs the world’s most productive coal mine in northeastern Wyoming, saw its profit slip 79% from a year ago as production in the region’s surface mining operations sunk to one of its lowest levels in a decade, the company reported Thursday.
Pat MaioMay 02, 2024
Gordon: Wyoming In Crosshairs Of Anti-Fossil Fuel Biden Administration
Gov. Mark Gordon vowed Wednesday that Wyoming will fight an onslaught of Biden initiatives that have put fossil fuels and the state's legacy energy industries in the crosshairs of the administration.
Pat MaioMay 02, 2024
Wyoming-Based Earth Work Solutions To Begin Work On $10M Nuclear Reactor Project
The CEO of Wyoming-based Earth Work Solutions in Gillette confirmed with Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday that it has a $10 million contract to begin excavation work on the nation’s first small nuclear power plant, expected to begin May 20.
Pat MaioMay 01, 2024
Australian Billionaire May Fuel Consolidation Of Wyoming Rare Earths Industry
The richest woman in Australia, who is worth more than $30 billion, could be eyeing a move to buy a significant chunk of Wyoming's rare earths deposits, and has even made a play in the related lithium field.
Pat MaioApril 30, 2024
Coal Production In Wyoming’s Powder River Basin Falls 21%
Data released Monday by the Wyoming State Geological Survey shows 2024 first quarter coal production plummeted nearly 21% from the first quarter of 2023, when the state dug up more than 58 million tons of coal.
Pat MaioApril 29, 2024
American Rare Earths Project Rejects $400 Million Buyout Offer From California Firm
American Rare Earths, which may have one of the world's largest rare earths operations near Wheatland, Wyoming, has rejected a $400 million buyout offer from a group of investors from Oakland, California.
Pat MaioApril 29, 2024
Inside Wyoming’s Uranium Revival At Lost Creek, Largest Producer In The US
Wyoming dominates the uranium sector mining about 95% of all production last year. Ur-Energy’s Lost Creek operation in Wyoming’s vast Red Desert is the leading the uranium boom and is largest producer in the U.S. Cowboy State Daily visited the operation last week.
Pat MaioApril 27, 2024
Wyoming Threatens To Sue Over New EPA Rule Designed To Kill Coal
Gov. Mark Gordon is threatening to sue to stop EPA rules announced Thursday designed to regulate coal-fired power plants out of existence and undermine Wyoming’s economy.
Pat MaioApril 25, 2024