clean energy

(Courtesy of Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)

‘So many ways hydrogen can go wrong’: Hub announcements viewed with caution

BY: - October 13, 2023

The Friday announcement that seven projects had been selected to receive $7 billion in seed money to kickstart the production of clean hydrogen across the country was billed by President Joe Biden’s administration as a major step toward slashing carbon emissions, creating thousands of domestic jobs and positioning the U.S. as a clean energy leader. […]

A wind turbine on a farmer's land near Aberdeen. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Wind is South Dakota’s role in ‘hydrogen hub’

BY: - October 13, 2023

Hydrogen power may soon spread across the country thanks to federal grants, and South Dakota wind turbines could provide some of the electricity to make it.  Hydrogen, as a gas, transforms into water when burned as fuel. While hydrogen is currently produced from fossil fuels — and used in industries such as oil refining, steel […]

The White House in Washington, D.C., on Sautrday, March 26, 2022. (Marisa Demarco/Source New Mexico)

Biden administration to send $7 billion for clean hydrogen hubs in 16 states

BY: - October 13, 2023

The Biden administration is directing $7 billion from the bipartisan infrastructure law to build seven regional hydrogen power hubs in 16 states, the White House announced Friday. The projects, each of which is a cluster of assets that produce and process hydrogen fuel as an alternative to fossil fuels, will benefit the climate, the economy […]

High-voltage electrical power lines. (Anton Petrus/Getty Images)

$9 billion project aims to bridge east and west power grids, accelerate renewable energy

BY: - October 6, 2023

There are few wind turbines west of the Missouri River in South Dakota, and some experts say a lack of transmission lines is the main reason.  A group of energy consultants is raising money to study a potential project that could change that. The $9 billion transmission line would unite the eastern and western power […]

A drawing of a Rapid City apartment complex that would generate enough solar energy to offset all of its electricity usage. (Courtesy City of Rapid City)

Rapid City apartments would offset all their energy use with solar panels

BY: - September 9, 2023

In what’s being described as a rare project for South Dakota, a developer is planning a six-building apartment complex in Rapid City with enough solar panels to offset all of its energy use. The housing will be available to those earning 60% or less than the average income in the area. The project — one […]

Service technicians work to install the foundation for a transmission tower at the CenterPoint Energy power plant on June 10, 2022, in Houston, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Speedier permitting of energy projects gains bipartisan backing on U.S. Senate panel

BY: - May 11, 2023

Members of both parties on the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee voiced their support Thursday for reforming the federal process for approving energy projects, saying it should be prioritized to secure domestic energy supply and boost renewable energy. There is bipartisan interest in revising the permitting process and members of both parties have […]

COMMENTARY
(Getty Images)

New clean energy incentives are an opportunity South Dakotans can’t afford to miss

BY: - February 2, 2023

South Dakota households could save thousands of dollars on energy costs and tax payments, thanks to new programs from last year’s federal climate law. The first of those incentives — tax credits on residential clean energy, energy efficiency upgrades and electric vehicles — launched last month. With programs from the climate law that passed last […]

A rendering of Dominion Energy's offshore wind installation vessel, which is expected to be completed this year. (Dominion Energy)

Offshore wind will need major investments in transmission, supply chain, reports say

BY: - January 26, 2023

Achieving the aggressive offshore wind power goals of the federal government and individual states will require billions of dollars in spending on transmission infrastructure, “unprecedented” cooperation between grid operators and federal and state agencies, and would be aided by major buildout of a domestic supply chain, per a pair of reports released this week.  Coastal […]

To create fusion ignition, the National Ignition Facility’s laser energy is converted into X-rays inside the hohlraum, which then compress a fuel capsule until it implodes, creating a high temperature, high pressure plasma. (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory)

Scientists announce a fusion breakthrough with big implications for clean energy 

BY: - December 13, 2022

Scientists at a U.S. national laboratory announced Tuesday that they achieved fusion ignition, a breakthrough decades in the making that could have major implications for clean energy.  Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory near San Francisco said that on Dec. 5, for the first time anywhere in the world, they managed to produce more […]

Utility companies are spending billions building out transmission and distribution lines around the country, leading some to call for an independent monitor to protect customers.

As utilities spend billions on transmission, support builds for independent monitoring

BY: - November 21, 2022

An aging electric grid, fossil fuel power plant retirements and a massive renewable electricity buildout are all contributing to a boom in transmission and distribution wire projects by electric utilities across the country. In 2020, investor-owned electric utilities spent $25 billion on transmission, up from $23.7 billion in 2019, figures that the Edison Electric Institute, which […]

A photo taken near the proposed pumped storage project along the Missouri River

Concerns raised over an energy storage project along the Missouri River

BY: - November 3, 2022

Backers of a multibillion-dollar proposal in rural south-central South Dakota say they have a way to capture and store renewable energy for later use. The clean energy pitch has drawn criticism and concern from nearby landowners, however, who worry that the project could damage the environment and impact recreational opportunities in south-central South Dakota. Project […]