Tuesday, January 13, 2026 |
Photo – Secretary of State Chuck Gray – Courtesy State of Wyoming
In Cheyenne, the conversation between two state officials went western during last Thursday’s meeting of the Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners that took place in Douglas.
After more than five hours of testimony about the proposed Pronghorn H2 wind energy project, which would supply electricity to an off-grid industrial plant, and not to the electrical grid in Wyoming, the mood between Governor Mark Gordon and Secretary of State Chuck Gray became testy.
A little over a month ago, on December 5, 2025, Converse County District Judge F. Scott Peasley vacated Wind Lease No. WL-1620, reversing the Wyoming State Board of Land Commissioners’ initial approval of the lease for the Pronghorn H2 green hydrogen project.
Judge Peasley’ decision was based on the project’s failure to meet the State’s statutory definition of wind energy leasing, which requires that converted wind energy be transmitted to the electrical grid via a substation.
The Pronghorn H2 project, which would use wind-generated power for off-grid electrolysis to produce green hydrogen jet fuel, did not plan to connect to the grid, leading the judge to rule that it did not qualify under the board’s own rules.
Last month’s ruling was a victory for rancher Mike Stephens and his family operation, Stephens Land and Livestock LLC. The rancher challenged the lease on grounds of legal non-compliance and potential harm to their adjacent homestead, including visual impacts, noise, and increased traffic.
Wyoming Attorney General, Keith Kauz, who was appointed by the Governor, has since announced plans to appeal the decision to the Wyoming Supreme Court. Kautz previously served as a justice on the Wyoming Supreme Court from 2015 until his mandatory retirement in March 2024 at age 70.
The dust-up between the Governor and the Wyoming Secretary of State concerned Kautz, with Governor Gordon accusing the Secretary of State Gray of casting aspersions against the former justice.
About halfway through the tense exchange, Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder tried to restore calm and order, but Gray admonished her, saying “please stop interrupting”.
The meeting was adjourned shortly after the exchange.
In a statement yesterday about the exchange with the Governor at Thursday’s SLIB meeting, the Secretary of State said he will bring the motion, again, before the board.
Last week’s special meeting of the state lands and investment board was held at the Douglas Library. The meeting drew dozens of residents opposed to the Pronghorn project. According to the original plan, up to 267 wind turbines would be constructed across the landscape outside Glenrock, including 15,500 acres of state trust lands in the northern Laramie Range.
Focus Clean Energy, a Colorado-based company, is behind the project.
