New Mexico is running ahead of its own clean-energy timeline. The 2019 Energy Transition Act set a 2030 goal of 50% renewable electricity for investor-owned utilities, but the state crossed that threshold in 2024 and kept going. Public Service Company of New Mexico, the largest utility, produced 80% carbon-free power last year, putting it on track for the 2040 target of 80% renewables and the 2045 goal of 100% carbon-free electricity.
The next phase is more complicated. PNM has proposed a nearly 1.7 GW mix of wind, solar, and battery storage, backed by a 40 MW gas peaker plant, to prepare for an expected 40% jump in consumption by 2032 and to exit its stake in the Four Corners coal plant by 2031. The utility says the gas plant is essential for covering periods when wind and solar are unavailable. Some environmental groups argue that building any new fossil-fuel capacity violates the state's legal commitment to phase out fossil fuels, and the dispute is now before regulators.
Other hurdles remain. Customers are concerned about PNM's pending takeover by Blackstone, which could shift the utility's clean-energy trajectory. And the experience so far shows that helping coal workers move to new jobs has been harder than building wind, solar, and batteries. A regulatory decision on the gas plant may not come until 2027, which could also affect whether projects qualify for federal tax credits that cut costs by 30% or more.