In the wake of a catastrophic battery storage facility fire in Moss Landing in January that burned over half the batteries in a 300-megawatt (MW) installation in Monterey County, 2025 has been a rollercoaster year for Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) regulations.
Continue Reading California Battery Energy Storage Systems Legislation Update: Safety Requirements and AB 205 “Opt-In” Procedures Amended

California is positioning itself to help run a unified, independently governed electricity market across the West. With AB 825 signed on September 19, 2025, the California Legislature authorized the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) to transfer certain market functions to a new Independent Regional Organization (IRO). The IRO will oversee CAISO’s Western Energy Imbalance Market (WEIM) and upcoming Extended Day-Ahead Market (EDAM), while CAISO will retain grid-balancing operations, resource adequacy and reliability, transmission planning, and policy implementation.
Continue Reading California’s Bold Move Toward a Unified Western Grid

On May 29, 2025, the United States Supreme Court issued an 8-0 opinion in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition, et al. v. Eagle County, Colorado, et al. that affirmed agency deference in review of environmental documents prepared under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).[1] This important decision will bring much-needed certainty for project developers and financing agencies that should reduce permitting obstacles resulting in greater time and cost savings to developers.
Continue Reading Supreme Court Restores Agency Deference In NEPA Reviews

Our previous post[1] covered the introduction of A.B. 303 (Addis), the “Battery Energy Safety and Accountability Act”, following a catastrophic fire at one of the world’s largest battery energy storage facilities located in Moss Landing, California, starting on January 16, 2025. As we explained, that bill, proposed as an urgency statute, would significantly curtail the authority of both local agencies and the California Energy Commission (CEC) to site new energy storage facilities and would likely result in significant adverse consequences for meeting California’s clean energy goals.
Continue Reading California Leaders Move to Support Energy Storage

As New York’s fifth Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificate (OREC) solicitation enters its final stages, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (“NYSERDA”) issued a Request for Information (“RFI”) on December 18, 2024, to solicit feedback concerning its next solicitation, which has been dubbed “NY6”.
Continue Reading NYSERDA Issues Request for Information in Preparation for Sixth OREC Solicitation with Transmission Issues in the Forefront

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the immediate future of the U.S. offshore wind industry after the re-election of Donald Trump, industry participants including the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) are cautiously moving forward with development activities.
Continue Reading BOEM Announces Comment Period on California Offshore Wind Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement

The offshore wind space in the U.S. is set for a period of uncertainty following the re-election of Donald J. Trump on November 5th. While there is still a lack of clarity around his future plans and potential outcomes, Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail and, importantly, actions undertaken during his previous administration, suggest that development in the space could be headed for a slowdown due to executive action, instability due to the threat of such action, or both.
Continue Reading Offshore Wind in the Second Trump Administration

On October 29, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held an auction for offshore wind areas in the Gulf of Maine. Although BOEM leased an offshore wind area in the Gulf of Maine for a research installation last August, the October auction was the first commercial offshore wind lease sale in the region. Of eight available areas, four were bid on and awarded. The areas in the Gulf of Maine are expected to require floating technology, a first for the east coast.
Continue Reading First Commercial Offshore Wind Lease Sale in the Gulf of Maine Completed

During a recent webinar, “Dispute Resolution Considerations in Construction Contracts”, I was joined by my colleagues Chris Kolosov and Emily Anderson to discuss the dispute resolution alternatives available to parties involved in construction contracts.
Continue Reading Dispute Resolution Considerations in Construction Contracts

On August 14, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held an auction for two offshore wind areas in the Central Atlantic off the coasts of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. While seventeen companies were qualified to bid on the areas in the Final Sale Notice, only six companies made bids during the auction, continuing a recent trend of considerably fewer bidders than qualified entities in offshore auctions. After seven rounds of bidding, both areas were awarded for a total of $92.6M.
Continue Reading Central Atlantic Auction – Key Takeaways and Next Steps

Hydrogen is increasingly vital in the global energy transition.
Continue Reading Green Hydrogen in the US: Insights from Sheppard Mullin’s Energy Team

In line with the goals set forth in the Federal Government’s Federal Sustainability Plan, the General Services Administration (“GSA”) recently issued a Request for Information (“RFI”) stating its intent to acquire approximately 2,700,000 MWh of carbon pollution-free (“CFE”)[1] retail electricity supply annually for a term of up to 10 years in the PJM Interconnection/Regional Transmission Operator (“PJM/RTO”)[2] region. The RFI sought information from companies capable of providing CFE, including Bundled CFE[3], to Federal Government agencies and facilities in the PJM region. The RFI noted that a solicitation could be released in the next couple of months and…
Continue Reading 6 Key Considerations for Selling Carbon Pollution-Free Electricity to the Federal Government

With the recent Gulf Auction falling short of expectations and projects on the East Coast faltering, many have adopted a bearish stance on the U.S. offshore wind sector. However, California recently passed two new bills to support the state’s burgeoning offshore wind industry: the Offshore Wind Advancement Act (AB 3) and the California Offshore Wind Expediting Act (SB 286). These bills, which take effect January 1, 2024, have the potential to significantly impact offshore wind development in California.
Continue Reading New Bills Advance California’s Offshore Wind Strategy