Energy
News
Wyoming Project Gets Boost In Race To Be First For U.S. Rare Earths Production
What could be one of the world’s richest rare earths deposits announced Friday a partnership for a Wyoming pilot plant. It’s a boost for Wyoming to be first in the U.S. to help stand up domestic rare earths production sooner.
Renée JeanDecember 21, 2024
Cluster Of Wind Turbines Sitting Idle Outside Casper Won’t Turn Anytime Soon
A cluster of turbines sitting idle in the December winds outside Casper will remain idle into the next year. Chevron is citing “telemetry issues” with PacificCorp for why they’ve not been used for much of the past few years.
Dale KillingbeckDecember 20, 2024
Barrasso Says Targeting Gas Exports Act Of A “Bitter Administration On Its Way Out”
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso doesn’t like a Tuesday U.S. Department of Energy report calling for fewer exports of liquified natural gas. He calls it “a biased study from a bitter administration on its way out the door.”
David MadisonDecember 19, 2024
Innovative Short Wind Turbines Are In For A Tough Test — Wyoming Winter
Airloom Energy will test its innovative wind turbines in winter — the perfect shakedown for an 80- to 100-foot-tall invention born in Wyoming. The novel Bill Gates-backed concept could make today’s 500-foot-tall wind towers obsolete.
Renée JeanDecember 18, 2024
John Bear Thinks Micro Plants Could Help Wyoming Coal, Create Power Autonomy
State Rep. John Bear is promoting the development of micro coal-fired power plants to serve Wyoming communities across the state. It’s a concept he says could help stabilize coal, attract industry and create power autonomy.
Leo WolfsonDecember 17, 2024
Wyoming Trona Mine Closer To Being Powered By 8 Tiny Nuclear Reactors
Tata Chemicals announced Friday that it has signed a new letter of intent for using up to eight nuclear microreactors to power its Green River trona operation. Tata is the first company in the U.S. to pursue small-scale industrial nuclear power.
Leo WolfsonDecember 13, 2024
Uranium Energy Corp. Finalizes $175M Buyout Of Wyoming Processing Plant
Uranium Energy Corp. has finalized a $175 million buyout of Rio Tinto’s Wyoming assets, which includes its Sweetwater County processing plant. The sale gives Uranium Energy the nation’s largest production capacity of uranium.
Renée JeanDecember 09, 2024
China’s Ban On Rare Earth Exports Good News For Huge Wyoming Projects
China issued a ban Tuesday on exporting to the U.S. critical rare earth minerals for semiconductors, infrared, fiber optics and military explosives. But representatives of Wyoming’s huge rare earths projects say the ban is good news for them.
Renée JeanDecember 04, 2024
Turkish Company Offers $285 Million To Buy Interest In Huge Wyoming Trona Mine
Sisecam, a Turkish company, is offering $285 million to buy out a minority stake in one of Wyoming’s huge new trona mines.
Renée JeanDecember 02, 2024
BLM Outlaws Coal In Powder River Basin; Gordon Says Prepare For A Fight
The BLM has made it official Tuesday — it’s ending new coal leases in the Powder River Basin, with an eye to producing no more coal after 2041. Gov. Mark Gordon says those are fighting words.
Renée JeanNovember 27, 2024
Bill Gates-Backed TerraPower Strikes Deal To Get Laser-Enriched Uranium
Bill Gates-backed TerraPower and the nuclear plant it's building in southwest Wyoming have secured another potential source of uranium. It’s struck a deal to get laser-enriched uranium.
Renée JeanNovember 24, 2024
F.E. Warren Air Force Base Exploring Geothermal Power To Boost Resiliency Against Catastrophe
Cheyenne’s F.E. Warren Air Force Base, which houses the nation’s nuclear missiles, is exploring geothermal energy to build up the military base’s resiliency. Geothermal power could ensure the base is functional, even if the overall power grid goes down.
Renée JeanNovember 23, 2024
14-Year-Old Casper Wind Farm Has Not Turned A Blade In At Least 3 Years
The 11 wind turbines on the northeast side of Casper once represented the region’s first step into renewable energy. Now, some say they are an eyesore that has idled for at least three years.
Dale KillingbeckNovember 20, 2024
Wyoming Coal Jobs Down Nearly 8% Over Last Nine Months, 25% Since 2017
Wyoming’s coal workforce is down nearly 8% over the last nine months. And since 2017, there are 25% fewer people working coal jobs.
Greg JohnsonNovember 20, 2024
Barring “A Miracle,” Wyoming Coal Will Miss 200M Tons For First Time Since 1992
Wyoming is on track to miss producing 200 million tons of coal for the first time since 1992. “Short of a miracle,” that’s what’s going to happen, says one of the nation’s leading energy economists.
Greg JohnsonNovember 17, 2024
Natrona County Planners OK 2,000-Acre Solar Farm West Of Casper
A proposal to put a 2,000-acre solar farm and battery storage facility west of Casper was OK’d by Natrona County Planners on Tuesday. The 199 MW facility with 100 MW of storage would be on private ranch land.
Dale KillingbeckNovember 14, 2024
Enhanced Oil Recovery Is Coming To Wyoming To Unlock Trapped Oil and Gas
Oil and gas wells typically leave behind 85% or so of available resources. Enhanced oil and gas recovery is key to more economical wells, and several companies are eyeing field tests in Wyoming for that.
Renée JeanNovember 12, 2024
More Details Emerge About Blockbuster Anschutz PRB Oil And Gas Deal
Occidental Petroleum has offered more details to Cowboy State Daily about the blockbuster oil and gas deal that has Anschutz acquiring Oxy/Anadarko assets in the PPB. Occidental says it’s keeping 150,000 acres it considers “core."
Renée JeanNovember 07, 2024
Trump Signals Huge Support For Oil & Gas During Victory Speech, Wyoming Industry Leaders Thrilled
It didn’t take long for former President Donald Trump to hype up America's oil and gas industry after he won the 2024 presidential election Tuesday. Wyoming industry leaders say Trump's victory is also a win for U.S. oil and gas.
Renée JeanNovember 06, 2024
Blockbuster Deal Has Anschutz Getting Oxy/Anadarko Oil And Gas Interests In PRB
The Powder River Basin’s largest private oil and gas operator is getting a lot bigger. In a blockbuster deal, Anschutz has sent notices to Powder River Basin operators that it’s acquired the working interests in Oxy/Anadarko in the PRB.
Renée JeanNovember 05, 2024
If Iceland Can Tap Volcano For Energy, Would That Work In Yellowstone?
Scientists will be drilling a 1.3-mile-deep borehole into an active volcano to tap into the potentially limitless energy from the magma underneath Iceland. The same could work in Yellowstone but will likely never happen.
Andrew RossiNovember 03, 2024
Upton’s China-Busting Rare Earths Demonstration Plant Is Officially Underway
Rare Element Resources has already started operations at its rare earths demonstration plant in Upton, Wyoming, with what’s known as a “shakedown.” The real shakedown will be perfecting a process that could help break China’s stranglehold on rare earths.
Renée JeanNovember 02, 2024
TerraPower Strikes Deal With South African Company For Steady Uranium Source
A stable source of uranium has been a big question mark for the TerraPower nuclear plant in Kemmerer. The company appears to have answered that question with a new agreement with a South African company.
Renée JeanOctober 31, 2024
$80 Million Bet Says Wyoming Can Unlock Secret To Getting More Oil From "Tight Rocks"
ThermoFisher Scientific is laying a $40 million bet, matched by $40 million from the Legislature, that Wyoming can get more oil from so-called "tight rocks." Squeezing even 1% more from those rocks is worth billions of dollars.
Renée JeanOctober 29, 2024