Developer LS Power on March 14 announced plans for an 800 MW wind farm on federal land southwest of Twin Falls, Idaho.
The Salmon Falls wind project would be developed by LS Power's subsidiary Magic Valley Energy on land under Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction.
The developer is in the early stages of the project and is talking with federal, state and local agencies, as well as conducting broader outreach. It hopes to start the permitting process later this year. Construction could start as soon as 2024, with the project coming on line in 2026, according to the company.
LS Power also continues work on its proposed 1,000 MW Lava Ridge wind project northeast of Twin Falls, also on BLM land. Construction could start on that project as soon as next year, with commercial operations beginning in 2025, according to the company.
BLM is working on an environmental impact statement and expects to issue a draft of it this summer, followed by a final version before the end of the year, according to the agency.
The project's proximity to the Minidoka National Historic Site was among the concerns raised by public comments submitted to the federal agency. More than 13,000 Japanese Americans were interned at the Minidoka camp during World War II, according to Friends of Minidoka, which opposes the wind farm.
Officials in nearby Power County approved NextEra Energy Resources to start building what would be Idaho's biggest solar project, a proposed 300 MW solar facility paired with a battery storage system. The county's building and zoning board approved a supplemental use permit at its March 1 meeting.
The developer hopes to have the Moon Crater Solar and Storage Project commercially available in late 2024 or 2025, company spokesman Matt Eissey said in an email.
"There is no offtaker at this time," he said. "We aim to sell to customers connected to Idaho Power or Rocky Mountain Power—either the utilities themselves or commercial and industrial customers in their service territories."
NextEra and Idaho Power signed an interconnection agreement on Oct. 5, 2021, Idaho Power spokesman Brad Bowlin told Clearing Up.
