Months after cancelling its massive 600-megawatt, $729 million Jackalope wind energy project in Sweetwater County, NextEra Energy Resources is advancing a handful of other renewable energy projects in the state.
The company recently inked an agreement that secures access to Black Hills Energy’s electric transmission system for 200 megawatts of “wind power” generation still under development on the state’s east side, according to a federal filing.
The agreement, which reserves space on Black Hill’s Pumpkin Buttes-Windstar 230 kilovolt line, doesn’t specify a particular NextEra project. However, the Florida-based company operates wind farms in Laramie and Converse counties — both with the potential for expansion. NextEra is also advancing a wind, solar and battery storage proposal in Platte County dubbed the Chugwater Energy Project. It consists of 300 megawatts of wind-generated power capacity, 150 megawatts of solar and 150 megawatts of battery storage capacity, the company says.
In Albany County, NextEra is developing the 160-megawatt Sailors Solar project on property leased from the city of Laramie.
One megawatt is enough electricity to power about 750 homes.
While the industry has faced uncertainty, the “interconnect” agreement with Black Hills is a sign of life for the future of industrial-scale renewable energy development in Wyoming.
PacifiCorp — parent company to Rocky Mountain Power, Wyoming’s largest electric utility — recently wiped new wind and solar from its future plans in the state. Though the utility has built its own renewable energy facilities here, it has also frequently called upon other companies to develop wind farms with the offer to potentially purchase the power they produce.
It’s unclear what PacifiCorp’s exit might portend for future renewable energy buildout in Wyoming, according to industry insiders who have spoken to WyoFile. There are federal policy headwinds, too. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” accelerates the phaseout of federal tax credits for wind energy. Those tax credits, according to PacifiCorp, reduced the cost of building wind energy by about 30%.
The Trump administration has also ordered federal agencies to pause permitting for some renewable energy. Industry analysts have speculated that’s one reason NextEra abandoned its Jackalope wind energy project on the west side of the state. The project spanned some federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
Still, several renewable energy projects appear to be moving forward.
The massive $5 billion, 3,550-megawatt Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project is under construction in Carbon County. It will rival the SunZia wind project in New Mexico as the largest onshore wind energy facility in North America, according to Power Company of Wyoming.
Member-owned electric co-ops are getting in on the action, too.
Though on a smaller scale, Powder River Energy Corporation plans to build a solar power generation and battery storage facility in northeast Wyoming. The LaBelle Prairie Project would generate 1.5 megawatts of solar power connected to a battery system to store up to 5 megawatts of energy, according to the company.
Renewable energy developers still must overcome local opposition to clear permitting hurdles at the state and county levels. NextEra won a permit in February from the Wyoming Industrial Siting Council for the Chugwater project. Next, the project goes before the Platte County Planning and Zoning board, then the Board of Platte County Commissioners.
“This is all part of the ‘wind wall’ that people are talking about,” Keith Miller told WyoFile. The Platte County resident has concerns about the Chugwater project. “They need to consider the broader implications of all of these projects.”
The company is asking county officials to rezone some areas from ranching, agriculture and mining to industrial use. It’s also requesting special use and variances for the project.
The matter goes before the planning and zoning board on May 13, and before the commission on a to-be-determined date later in May.
