Planning Commission tables request for large outdoor battery storage and testing facility near Truckee Canal

The Churchill County Planning Commission on March 20 tabled consideration of a special-use-permit application from NNV Investments LLC — a subsidiary of Redwood Materials — that would allow an outdoor battery storage yard and an explosion/combustion testing area on a 438.42-acre industrial parcel north of Bango (Bangor) Road.

Dean Patterson, Public Works and Planning, told the commission the application seeks to site a roughly 35-acre outdoor staging and storage area for end-of-life lithium-ion battery packs plus a separate R&D/testing pad of roughly 2.5 acres. Patterson said the storage area would be developed in phases and arranged on a grid with spacing and height limits intended to limit fire propagation; the applicant proposed a 300-gallon fire-suppression vehicle, on-site tanks and an emergency response plan that must satisfy the fire marshal.

The staff report recommended approval with conditions but flagged multiple concerns — stormwater runoff and containment, permanent on-site services…