Solar permitting — Catron County, New Mexico
1 known opposition group.
Largest NM county by area; extremely remote with very low density (0. Permitting: Conditional Use Permit; 200-ft max / 100-ft min setbacks. Track record: no prior utility-scale solar on record — greenfield jurisdiction; no establishe…
Key driver: Largest NM county by area; extremely remote with very low density (0.5/sq mi); Reserve seat; PNM and rural co-op service; excellent solar resource but limited transmission infrastructure and long interconnection queue distances constrain development; county commission receptive to lease revenue; infrastructure gap and interconnection costs are primary barriers; B-grade reflects permissive politics, abundant land, good solar resource offset by infrastructure limitations and remote location
Permitting process
Local permitting pathway
Conditional Use Permit (CUP) — Catron County Commission
Setbacks & buffers
100 ft from property lines; 200 ft from occupied structures; per Catron County Land Use Regulations
Spacing requirements
None established
Size restrictions
None codified; managed via CUP/SUP conditions
Penalties & bonding
Total penalty: +28 | Active moratorium: +28
State-level permits & approvals
County zoning authority; no state solar preemption; conditional use or special use permit (CUP/SUP) required for utility-scale solar (>1 MW); NM model solar ordinance framework available but adoption varies by county; decommissioning bond typically required; NM Solar Rights Act (1978, amended) protects residential solar access but does not preempt local large-project zoning
Full records for this county are part of a SitePath subscription.
State policy & grid context
State RPS & clean energy policy
100% carbon-free by 2045 (IOUs) / 2050 (co-ops) | Energy Transition Act / SB 489 (2019) | NMSA §62-16-1 et seq.
State incentive programs
Federal ITC eligible; NM Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit (REPTC); NM Energy Transition Act (2019) zero-carbon mandate driving procurement; PNM and Xcel NM renewable procurement programs; NM Solar Market Development Tax Credit (residential); USDA REAP eligible for rural counties
Grid & interconnection
WECC / PNM (Public Service Company of New Mexico)
Full records for this county are part of a SitePath subscription.
Battery storage (BESS) P1 State-Default Permitting
No confirmed county BESS ordinance.
Local BESS ordinances & bylaws
County-level battery-storage status, safety requirements, and projects — each linked to a primary source.
Community opposition P1 1 tracked
Organized opposition signals on record for this county — petitions, community groups, and oppositional coverage — each linked to its primary source.
- Luna County… Storage
SitePath maintains the most complete community-opposition dataset available, refreshed continuously from primary sources.
Subscriber intel Subscribers
Researched for this county and available with a subscription:
- 🔒Project track record
- 🔒Developer intelligence
- 🔒Community & board sentiment
- 🔒Governing board
- 🔒Sentiment rollup
Energy-related meetings & dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
State PSC dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
Local news P3
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
Filter by grade, state, moratorium status, and compliance stringency. Compare counties side by side.