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The US has decided to cancel what was set to become the largest solar project in North America, as the Trump administration intensifies its opposition to the embattled renewable energy sector.

On Thursday evening, the Bureau of Land Management revoked approval for Esmeralda 7, a 6.2 gigawatt project capable of powering nearly 2 million homes. This project had begun the permitting process during the Biden administration.

This prominent Nevada solar project, supported by NextEra Energy, the leading renewable energy company in the US, is the latest to fall victim to the Trump administration. President Trump has labeled renewable energy projects as a “scam.”

The Esmeralda 7 project included seven solar farms and battery systems and was backed by power developers such as Arevia Power, ConnectGen, and Invenergy. It would have covered approximately 62,300 acres of federal lands in the Nevada desert, northwest of Las Vegas.

Since January, Doug Burgum’s Department of the Interior has sped up permitting for fossil fuel projects while imposing tighter restrictions on solar and wind initiatives.

Large offshore wind projects have also found themselves targeted by the administration. In April, Burgum instructed Equinor to cease construction activities on its 810 megawatt Empire offshore wind farm and issued a stop work order on Ørsted’s Revolution Wind.

While both projects were eventually allowed to proceed, industry backers say the uncertainty undermines US energy needs and investor confidence.

The crackdown on renewables comes as the country faces soaring power demand due to the proliferation of data centres to fuel the rise of artificial intelligence as well as the electrification of vehicles and home appliances.

NV Energy, the state’s largest utility, projects that power demand will be 34 per cent higher in 2035 compared with 2022.

“We remain deeply concerned that this administration continues to flout the law to the detriment of consumers, the grid and America’s economic competitiveness,” said Ben Norris, vice-president of regulatory affairs for the Solar Energy Industries Association.

“We need more power on the grid, fast, and the solar and storage industry is ready to provide it, but we need the administration to get serious about truly achieving American energy dominance.” 

The Department of the Interior did not confirm that the project had been cancelled, but said it and the project developers had “agreed to change” approach and that they would have the option to “submit individual project proposals to . . . more effectively analyse potential impacts”.

NextEra said it “remain[s] committed to pursuing our project’s comprehensive environmental analysis by working closely with the Bureau of Land Management”.

Invenergy declined to comment.

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