Energy

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright Makes First Visit To Los Alamos National Laboratory … Calls It America’s ‘National Security Brain Trust’

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DOE Secretary Chris Wright is escorted into one of the lab’s facilities by Deputy Director for Weapons Bob Webster and Laboratory Staff Director Frances Chadwick. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

  • Site tour covered Weapons, AI, Supercomputing and more

DOE Secretary Chris Wright is escorted into one of the lab’s facilities by Deputy Director for Weapons Bob Webster and Laboratory Staff Director Frances Chadwick.

During his inaugural visit to Los Alamos National Laboratory on Feb. 24, U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright told staff and leadership his administration believes Los Alamos is the nation’s Read More

House Passes Legislation To Help Reduce Utility Costs

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Rep. Kristina Ortez (D-Taos)

NMDP News:

SANTA FE — Legislation to help reduce utility costs for New Mexicans is now headed to the Senate after passing the House Tuesday by a vote of 42-25.

House Bill 91 allows public utilities in the state to implement additional rate structures intended to reduce utility costs for low-income customers. These rate changes could decrease or eliminate balances for customers and allow for them to pay lower amounts more frequently.

“No one in our state should have to live without running water, electricity, or make impossible choices about which necessities to Read More

Bill To Increase Top Oil And Gas Royalty Rate On New Mexico State Lands Passes Senate

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From the New Mexico State Land Office:

          • Offering market rate for premium tracts would generate over $1 billion in additional value for public schools, universities and hospitals

SANTA FE – For the first time, legislation pushed by New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard to increase the top royalty rate offered for new oil and gas development on the best state lands from 20% to the market rate of 25% passed the full New Mexico Senate today.

Senate Bill 23, sponsored by Sen. George Muñoz and co-sponsored by Speaker of the House Javier Martinez, Sen. Liz Stefanics and Rep. Read More

Los Alamos County And LANL ECA Moving Out Of Limbo

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DPU Manager Philo Shelton

By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

After a period of uncertainty, the energy coordination agreement (ECA) between Los Alamos County and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) received some assurance for its continuation through a request to extend the existing ECA for six months.

Department of Public Utilities Manager Philo Shelton reported that as of Tuesday, NNSA requested a six-month extension to the current ECA and was told a determination should be made Thursday.

“We are definitely in weekly communication with our counterparts, Read More

Los Alamos-Based UbiQD Expands Solar Innovation With Acquisition Of BlueDot Photonics

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QCD on flexible film. Courtesy/UbiQD

Courtesy/UbiQD

UbiQD News:

UbiQD, Inc., the New Mexico-based leader in quantum dot (QD) technology and manufacturing, today announced the acquisition of substantially all assets of BlueDot Photonics, Inc. (BlueDot), including its groundbreaking perovskite-based quantum cutting technology. The deal also enabled UbiQD to secure exclusive rights to BlueDot’s associated intellectual property, originally developed at the University of Washington and licensed from CoMotion.

By leveraging BlueDot’s innovative doped perovskite materials, Read More

Mason: Rev Your Engines For Electric School Buses!

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By SARA ANN MASON
Los Alamos

What would you say to saving our schools money, reducing students and school staff exposure to a known cause of chronic health conditions, increasing community air quality, and lowering carbon emissions?

You might think such wide-ranging benefits require many different policies, but they are all achievable by simply converting our school buses to electric vehicles. And we have the opportunity to make that easier for our schools this legislative session!

House Bill 32, “Electric or Alternative Fuel School Buses”, makes electric school buses available and affordable Read More

Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard Receives Luminaria Award For Bringing Land Office Into 21st Century

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Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard

CVNM News:

          • “Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard has been a guiding light in bringing New Mexico’s trust lands into the 21st century.” –CVNM CEO Demis Foster

SANTA FE – On Tuesday, Feb. 4, Conservation Voters New Mexico (CVNM) will present  New Mexico’s Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richards with its Luminaria Award. The annual award recognizes pro-conservation champions in New Mexico who lead the way to a better New Mexico for air, land, water, wildlife and communities.

In announcing the Award, CVNM CEO Demis Foster shared the following Read More

Los Alamos National Laboratory: Artificial Intelligence Algorithms Used To Tune Particle Accelerators

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LANL research and development engineer Alexander Scheinker and the project’s lead – shown here at the HiRES compact accelerator for ultrafast electron diffraction at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, for which AI tools are being developed. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

  • Training data means real-time, effective tuning to ensure accelerator precision

Accelerators — machines that speed up particles such as protons — are useful in nuclear and high-energy physics as well as materials science, dynamic imaging and even isotope production for cancer therapy. A Los Alamos National Laboratory-led Read More

Heinrich’s Congressional Briefing Highlights Advancements, Job Creation In Electric Vehicle Supply Chain

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U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich hosting a congressional briefing on developments in manufacturing electric vehicles and their supply chains in the United States, from batteries to electric school buses. Courtesy photo

U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, hosted a congressional briefing on developments in manufacturing electric vehicles and their supply chains in the United States, from batteries to electric school buses.

Panelists from the Zero Emission Transportation Association Read More

Solar Is Vital To Decarbonization – So Why Stifle Its Growth?

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By NICHOLAS THOMPSON
Los Alamos

Recently the rule which governs rooftop solar (E-5) was updated. There were two significant changes that drastically impact the value a homeowner or business can get from installing solar. This, in conjunction with arbitrary limits on the amount of solar allowed to be installed, will hamper residential solar deployment in Los Alamos at a time when we need as much clean energy as we can get.

Starting from the basics, solar systems generate energy during the day when it’s sunny. At night, they don’t do anything. But most people use energy throughout the day and night, Read More