Energy expert tells NM lawmakers Project Jupiter could roll back air quality progress by 20 years

Environmental advocates have cautioned New Mexico lawmakers that Project Jupiter, a data center campus developed by Oracle and OpenAI in Doña Ana County, threatens to roll back two decades of air quality improvements. David Baake, an energy policy consultant for Western Resource Advocates, testified before the interim Water and Natural Resources Committee, asserting that the project's proposed fuel cell microgrid, operating independently of the main power grid, would produce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to all existing power plants in New Mexico combined. A public hearing on Project Jupiter's air quality permit application is scheduled for October with the New Mexico Environment Department.

The legislative committee has committed to continuing hearings on data centers throughout its remaining interim session meetings. Lawmakers and a representative from PNM, the state's largest electric provider, expressed concerns that microgrid developments might be exempt from the 2019 Energy Transition Act, which mandates increased renewable energy usage. Cholla Khoury of the Public Regulation Commission clarified that her agency does not regulate microgrids unless they connect to the existing grid.

Legislators from both parties questioned how these developments align with state renewable energy objectives. Rep. Micaela Lara Cadena (D-Mesilla), a vocal critic of Project Jupiter, is involved in a group proposing a large-scale data center moratorium for the next legislative session. Baake recommended reviving the Microgrid Oversight Act, a previously unsuccessful bill, to enforce stricter regulations on microgrids and ensure their compliance with the Energy Transition Act.