The Interior Department could be softening its hard-line stance on solar energy.
Interior is reviewing at least 20 commercial-scale projects that have languished in the permitting pipeline since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, according to three agency career officials familiar with the process.
That includes a package of six utility-scale projects given the green light Friday by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to resume active reviews, such as the massive Esmeralda Energy Center in Nevada, said the officials, who were granted anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the matter.
This marks a significant turn by the Trump administration, which this summer put in place unique permitting hurdles for renewable energy. Burgum and other officials also routinely deride solar and wind energy as “unreliable” and “intermittent” energy sources that cannot be counted on when the wind stops blowing and the sun goes down at night.
