The Interior Department moved to revisit some solar power projects on federal lands, but wind energy did not return.
A small wind farm partially built on federal land in Wyoming that was approved by the Interior Department in the final days of the Biden administration has been stalled for more than a year.
The Two Rivers Wind Project needs final approval from the Bureau of Land Management before construction can begin, local officials said following the development of wind energy in the area.
This is the only wind farm that was in BLM’s pipeline during the Biden administration, and appears to still be operating at the agency under President Donald Trump, who has regularly denounced wind energy as a scam.
The moribund state of wind projects on federal lands illustrates the limits of recent renewable energy permitting at the BLM, which has reconsidered about 20 solar projects since January. The Trump administration’s move to consider these utility-scale solar projects, which have been frozen since the summer, is having ripple effects, including restarting stalled reform authorization talks on Capitol Hill earlier this month. But on public lands in the West, the return of the sun hasn’t translated into brighter prospects for wind power.
Justin Meuse, director of climate and energy government relations at the Wilderness Society, said even the Home Office campaign on solar power had always been limited. He said there have been no new wind or solar project applications to the BLM since the Trump administration imposed additional oversight on renewable energy last summer.
“We have some of the best solar and wind resources on our public lands anywhere in the country, and the fact that these policies almost completely shut down new business starts is a big problem, especially when we need more energy at a time of fluctuating oil prices,” Meuse said.
The developers of three wind farms on federal land that were on the BLM’s list of potential projects last year appear to have abandoned their plans. Additionally, BLM reversed course last year on a large wind farm in Idaho, rescinding an approval issued near the end of the Biden administration.
A BLM spokesperson did not respond to questions about whether the administration is pursuing wind projects or provide a list of renewable projects currently under consideration.
A BLM spokesperson said renewable energy projects are “in the permitting process” in line with an executive order aimed at eliminating “incentives” for wind and solar projects.
Two Rivers Wind, located in Carbon County, Wyoming, received approval from the Bureau of Land Management in the final weeks of the Biden administration, but has since been put on hold. The 57-turbine project, which will be located primarily on private and federal lands, will install up to 14 turbines and power lines on federal land.
Carbon County Commissioner Sue Jones said the project needs a “signature” from BLM officials to move forward. It’s just not happening.
“It almost came close to being a success, but it didn’t happen,” Jones said of the project. “When everything stopped, they were piling up.”
The Carbon County Planning and Zoning Department’s 2025 annual report on the wind project notes that the BLM record of decision for the project is “complete,” but is still “awaiting Department of the Interior (DOI) review and BLM state director’s signature on a memorandum of agreement.” Until then, the project does not have the priority it needs to proceed.
County officials said Tuesday that the project also has not yet received the necessary local permits, which are typically issued after federal approval.
Two Rivers is a joint venture between Canadian companies BluEarth Renewables and Clearway Energy. A Blue Earth spokesperson referred the reporter to a Clearway spokesperson, who declined to comment.
BluEarth is also building wind transmission lines for another wind project called Lucky Star near Wyoming. The transmission line received approval from the BLM in early February.
Previously slated to include BLM land, the 90-turbine wind farm has been relocated to state and private land.
movement of the sun is limited
The permitting hurdles the Interior Department has set specifically for renewable energy are detailed in a July memorandum that states the department will ask either Secretary Doug Burgum or Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor to approve each step of the process for solar and wind projects.
This memorandum, along with other new policies announced in August, left solar and wind power development largely at a standstill until some solar projects began moving forward earlier this year.
“That memo opened a dam and everything stopped,” said an industry source, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation for companies. “Now we have a spillway, or outfall, so some water is coming out of the dam. But it’s still a dam.”
Solar projects with renewed momentum include those that were well advanced in the approval process in Arizona and Nevada, as well as part of a large project in the Nevada desert that Interior Corp. canceled last year. The Biden administration had combined the seven projects into the Esmeralda 7 development, but Burgum said they would be allowed to proceed individually with federal approval.
The more promising prospects for solar power are already having political implications, with Senate Democrats this month restarting talks with Republicans they halted last year because of the administration’s hostility to renewable energy. Some Republicans, like Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, who had grown frustrated with Mr. Interior’s positions on renewable energy development, have welcomed the improved outlook for solar power.
The uncoupling of some renewable energy projects also comes as the Trump administration faces voter dissatisfaction with rising energy prices, which many analysts say will be alleviated by bringing more types of energy onto the grid.
The Trump administration last week also hinted at a possible compromise on at least one offshore wind project, which is a major target of the Interior Department’s rejection of renewable energy projects. The administration has declined to appeal a loss related to an effort to block construction of a wind energy project off the coast of Rhode Island.
Still, a White House spokesperson clarified that President Trump has not changed his opinion on wind.
“President Trump’s position on wind energy has been consistent for years. This is a liability and the biggest fraud of the century,” Taylor Rogers said in an email.
Onshore wind power generation canceled
The near future for onshore wind power on federal lands looks bleak.
“There has been little progress moving away from the permitting ban on wind and solar power that would impact affordability,” said Sandra Purohit, federal advocacy director at business group E2.
“A major domestic energy source that could help address rising energy prices remains stalled at the (Department of the Interior) and other federal agencies,” she said.
A list of “currently in progress” wind energy projects maintained by the Bureau of Land Management, which oversees permitting of renewable energy on federal lands, includes five wind farms and two power line connections. Four wind projects that received or were seeking approval under the Biden administration appear to have been canceled by the BLM or its developers, according to the companies and the agency’s project planning website.
One of its ongoing projects, the 400-turbine Lava Ridge wind project in Idaho, was struck by Interior in August. The plan received final approval from the BLM in December 2024 under the Biden administration, but was opposed by farmers and local residents concerned about the impact on wildlife. Some supporters also expressed concerns about the project’s proximity to Minidoka National Historic Site, which was a Japanese military internment camp during World War II.
Development company Magic Valley Energy, a subsidiary of LS Power, also had a second Idaho project called Salmon Falls Wind in preliminary stages of consideration with the BLM. The project has no documentation on BLM’s review website and appears to be not moving forward. LS Power did not respond to a request for comment.
Two projects planned for Wyoming, Maestro and Jackalope, were also cancelled. Jackalope, which was scheduled to have more than 200 turbines, was canceled by developer NextEra earlier this year, spokesman Neil Nissan confirmed. Maestro could have had nearly 100 turbines, but BLM’s planning website says it has been canceled. Developer Maestro Wind could not be reached for comment.
Another Wyoming wind project, which is not on the BLM list but is being developed on a combination of private, state and federal lands, is also under construction, called the Chokecherry Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project, the developer said. The project is expected to be one of the largest wind farms in the United States and received most of its federal approvals during the Obama administration and supplemental analysis during the first Trump administration.
“A carefully planned construction plan is bringing this unique wind power project to fruition while creating good jobs for Wyoming workers and ensuring environmental protection,” said Kara Choquette, spokesperson for the Wyoming Power Company.
Two transmission lines associated with wind projects in Wyoming that the BLM listed as active, called Rock Creek and Uinter Wind, received approval during the Biden administration.
Gillian Scott, spokeswoman for the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, said the Rock Creek transmission line is complete and construction on the Uintah transmission line is expected to begin later this year. Invenergy, the developer of Uinta, did not respond to a request for comment.
Ian Stevenson can be reached on Signal at ianstevenson.77.
