At a conference of western governors in Arizona last week, the region's energy future dominated the conversion as populations and the AI data center industry continue to grow and drive up demand.
It didn't take long for Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to bring up energy as he delivered his opening speech at the meeting.
"We knew that the need for electricity was going to increase across our country, but we just didn't realize the scale, the scope, and the speed at which we would need it," he said.
Cox, who chairs the Western Governors Association, said that energy is both a matter of national security and affordability for everyday Americans.
"We need to be able to move the energy, those electrons, from one place to another in a way that makes sure that it's secure and that we can reduce the cost to our citizens who are struggling right now under the burden of rising prices and the cost of living all across this country," Cox said.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum delivered a similar message during his keynote speech, emphasizing the need for more energy to power the AI revolution.
"How do we make sure that we've got the power that we need to win the AI arms race against China?" he said.
Permitting reform
Both Burgum and Cox said permitting reform is a key to solving that problem, because it will allow energy projects to come on line faster.
Cox said that is especially true in western states, where it can sometimes take a decade or more to build major transmission projects that crisscross federal and state lines.
"In states like Utah, where the federal government owns about two-thirds of the land in our state, it's not just about energy production, although much of that production has to take place on federal lands, which we don't control, so we need help there," Cox said. "It's also about transmission."
Burgum said the Trump administration is already taking steps on its own to speed up some energy projects.
He claimed his team was able to complete an environmental review called an Environmental Impact Statement that usually takes years in under a month.
"I would put the 24-day EIS up against a stack of ones that took two years and ask any of you or ask any judge to say which one was the one that took 24 days," Burgum said.
Picking winners and losers
That streamlined permitting process, announced by the Interior Department earlier this year, did not apply to solar or wind projects. That drew criticism from renewable advocates, who have long sought permitting reforms to benefit their projects, and backlash from environmental groups, who argue the Trump administration is illegally bypassing critical safeguards.
"These arbitrary time limits make a complete review of the risks of potentially hazardous projects impossible," Athan Manuel, director of Sierra Club's Lands Protection Program, said in a statement after the department announced the changes.
Burgum acknowledged the department will have to work with Congress to accomplish more of the administration's permitting reform goals, some of which could find some bipartisan support.
Arizona Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego has backed permitting reform before, and told the U.S. Hispanic Business Council it is needed to meet the country's energy needs.
"So we need to have a very agnostic when it comes to energy, which means all forms of energy as fast as possible on the grid," he said in September.
Cox, the Utah Republican, expressed a similar sentiment, saying the country needs to adopt an all-of-the-above approach to meeting its energy needs.
"We all know that we need more of everything right now, and we've got to figure out how to do that.
So far, the Trump administration has not taken that approach, aggressively backing coal and gas production while curtailing major renewable projects on federal land, including a massive solar project in Nevada.
"There is no energy transition. Newsflash," Burgum said.
He then offered a criticism often levied by opponents of renewable energy.
"We were heading towards a world where every light switch would have to have a sign that this may or may not work based on whether the wind is blowing or the sun is shining," Burgum said.
Renewable advocates discount that criticism, saying advancements in battery storage technology have made it more reliable, regardless of time of day or weather.
But Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, both Democrats who have backed efforts to boost renewable energy production and sat on the panel, didn't push back on Burgum's comments.
For his part, Cox offered a couched disagreement saying he agrees with the Trump administration's decision to cancel some renewable projects.
"Like some of the wind projects I think just don't pencil out, that we've spent a lot of money on in the past, money that could have been spent somewhere else," he said.
But Cox said some solar projects are reliable enough to provide baseload, or a consistent power supply that can meet immediate demands.
"And so solar with batteries, though, is different than just plain solar. So base load matters, and we desperately need more base load," he said.
Energy isn't everything
At the meeting, Burgum reminded the panel that electricity generation isn't the only problem posed by the AI revolution.
"We need water for these data centers as well for cooling," he said.
Then Burgum, the former governor of North Dakota, joked, "Or you can build your data centers in North Dakota because then you don't need as much cooling."
The western governors agreed with that assessment, but gave no indication at the meeting that they are close to resolving the ongoing water stalemate between Upper and Lower Basin states over Colorado River water.
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