With significant population growth on the horizon, Nevada must support the critical energy demand. At the Humboldt County Board of Commissioners regular meeting on Feb. 5, Tallgrass Energy presented their Pinyon Pipeline project that will convert NV Energy’s North Valmy Generating Station, approximately 40 miles east of Winnemucca, from coal to natural gas by 2026.
According to Tallgrass Public Relations Manager Sarah Meirose and Humboldt County Economic Development Officer Michelle Hammond-Allen, the project will generate approximately 200 jobs during the construction phase, seven permanent jobs at the Valmy Station (not including the jobs that will be kept that are already there) and over $8 million in taxes for the county during its lifetime.
A 16-mile, single-customer lateral pipeline will transport natural gas from Pinyon’s existing Ruby Pipeline to the North Valmy Plant, enabling the transition from coal to natural gas.
“This project helps shore up energy resiliency in Northern Nevada, while also keeping good paying jobs in Humboldt County. The employees of Valmy Power Plant are made up of our residents, our families; these are people that call our community home,” said Hammond-Allen in an email.
NV Energy has found that it would be more beneficial to sustaining economic and population growth in Nevada to convert the Station to natural gas rather than decommissioning it permanently in efforts to address emission.
Senate Bill 358, passed in 2019, requires Nevada to use renewable energy sources to generate half of its electricity by the year 2030 and be carbon neutral by 2050.
According to NV Energy, the conversion will reduce emissions by 50 percent and provide energy to over 300,000 households.
The Valmy Station is Nevada’s last coal-powered plant, producing 261 megawatts, enough energy to power 315,000 homes, and is owned jointly (50/50) by NV Energy and Idaho Power. The Valmy Station provides approximately $900,000 in tax revenue to Humboldt County annually, according to NV Energy.
The Commission unanimously approved a letter of support regarding applications filed by Tallgrass with the Nevada Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for permits to operate and construct the intrastate pipeline (Docket No. 23-12023).
“Projects and investments like this matter in our communities. From an economic development perspective, knowing we have adequate infrastructure for growth, and, with solid partners, makes a huge difference in our ability to develop and diversify. Not only will this project protect existing jobs, but Pinyon alone will create hundreds of new construction jobs and at least 7 new permanent positions,” states the Board’s letter.
Meirose explained during the meeting with the Board that once Tallgrass receives the proper permitting, they anticipate the construction period to take about five months.
Construction will include clearing and grading the land, trenching, lowering the pipe in and then backfilling. Then, extensive hydrostatic testing will be done in order to ensure safety before actual operation begins, with the land restored to its natural habitat by January of 2026.
Tallgrass filed for permitting with the Bureau of Land Management in August of 2023 and filed for their Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity with Nevada PUC in Dec. 2023.
Environmental and land studies have already been completed, but Tallgrass is currently waiting for the BLM to conduct cultural studies, according to Meirose.