Wyoming’s Renewable Gold Rush Faces Trump-Sized Roadblock

Nearly every corner of Wyoming’s vast terrain is feeling the surge of renewable energy development. Massive wind farms like the Chokecherry and Sierra Madre project are popping up faster than tumbleweeds, promising a whopping 3,500 megawatts of capacity. That’s a 34% boost to the state’s energy portfolio. Not too shabby.

The numbers are staggering. Chokecherry alone will pump $850 million in tax revenue into state and local coffers over its lifetime. The Rail Tie Wind Project? Another $176 million. Meanwhile, the Dutchman Solar plus Battery Project is set to add nearly 500 megawatts in Converse County. Billions in private investment. Hundreds of jobs. Money flowing like the North Platte in springtime.

But there’s a storm brewing on the horizon. A Trump-shaped one. His executive order threatens to slash federal tax credits that make these projects viable. Projects now face a brutal deadline: start construction before July 2026 or kiss those credits goodbye. Talk about a buzzkill.

The timing couldn’t be worse. These massive projects take years to permit and build. Without those credits, Wyoming residents could see their electricity costs jump by 29% – the highest increase in the nation. Ouch.

Wyoming’s political scene is split. Some Republican leaders are all for these renewable leases on state lands – hey, that money funds schools! Others see wind turbines as a direct threat to the state’s beloved oil and gas industry. It’s the classic Wyoming conundrum: embrace the future or cling to the past?

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Land Management keeps approving renewable projects on public lands. Since 2021, they’ve greenlit 45 projects across the West, opening up millions of acres for solar development. This diverges sharply from the continued support for fossil fuels, which receive 42 times more subsidies than renewable energy globally. This expansion comes as solar energy has become significantly cheaper than coal and other conventional energy sources. The newly updated Western Solar Plan now includes Wyoming among the 11 western states covered in the initiative.

The renewable gold rush could help Wyoming shift to cleaner energy while keeping its coffers full. But with tax credits hanging in the balance, Wyoming’s renewable boom might just go bust. The clock is ticking. And in Wyoming’s wide-open spaces, you can almost hear it.