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One window for public input: PUC delays all gas-case comments until January 14
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Approved, Colorado Accountability Project, Commentary, State

One window for public input: PUC delays all gas-case comments until January 14

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Save your comment for the PUC til January I have to fix an earlier goof. In an earlier newsletter (see the first link below), I invited people to sign up for the Dec 10th PUC meeting to speak about their recent natural gas decision. I have since learned that if you are planning on speaking to the PUC on the 10th, you are not allowed to speak about this particular issue. Before talking about why, let me first remind you (and encourage you) to save your comments for January. You should still have the opportunity to speak up January 14th virtually, so I encourage you to do so. Details on how to sign up for that meeting will be forthcoming along with my prepared testimony on or about January 10th. Returning to the pres...
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Regulators Keep Pueblo Comanche Coal Unit Running While Xcel Repairs Newer Plant
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Regulators Keep Pueblo Comanche Coal Unit Running While Xcel Repairs Newer Plant

By Alexander Edwards | The Denver Gazette The Comanche Power Plant in Pueblo will continue to operate a coal-powered electrical generating unit that was slated for retirement this month for one more year. The move comes after Xcel Energy, the state’s largest utility company, petitioned in November to keep one generator operating after an outage at the coal-fired power plant. Gov. Jared Polis backed the petition. On Wednesday, the Public Utilities Commission approved a variance submitted by the utility. This allows Comanche 2, which was slated to be retired on Dec. 31, to continue operating as Xcel fixes the Comanche 3. “The Commission found that the outage at Comanche 3 was the sole justification for the extension of Comanche 2,” a fact sheet released by th...
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New PUC Rules Push State Toward Natural Gas Phase-Out and Rising Utility Bills
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The Independence Institute, Approved, State

New PUC Rules Push State Toward Natural Gas Phase-Out and Rising Utility Bills

By Jake Fogleman | The Independence Institute The regulatory noose around Colorado’s natural gas utilities just got a whole lot tighter, and captive ratepayers stand to bear the brunt of the economic pain. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) on Monday issued a formal decision updating the state’s emissions targets under its first-in-the-nation “clean heat plan” law. The decision established by rule that Colorado gas utilities must reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 41 percent compared to 2015 levels by 2035, expanding upon the existing 22 percent by 2030 target set in statute. Furthermore, the commission opted to go beyond what the underlying statute required by flirting with a total phase-out of natural gas. Despite claiming it was not setting any fur...
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State Regulators Move Colorado Toward All-Electric Heating by 2050 at Any Cost
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

State Regulators Move Colorado Toward All-Electric Heating by 2050 at Any Cost

By Michael Booth | The Colorado Sun Xcel and other utilities must make 41% cuts to natural gas heating emissions in 10 years, transition fully by 2050. Colorado officials are making another major push toward electrification of home heating and deep cuts to carbon from natural gas, despite consumer cost concerns and the Trump administration’s attempt to revive the use of fossil fuels.The Public Utilities Commission on Monday finalized a state Clean Heat framework requiring Xcel and other utilities supplying natural gas for home and building heating to cut the carbon emissions from their systems by 41% in 10 years. The utilities are expected to reach 100% decarbonization of building heating by 2050, an ambitious goal celebrated by the environmental and clean energy groups who had...
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Before Closing Pueblo’s Coal Unit Colorado Must Guarantee Reliable Power
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

Before Closing Pueblo’s Coal Unit Colorado Must Guarantee Reliable Power

By The Gazette Editorial Board | The Denver Gazette To meet Colorado’s surging need for electricity, our state needs energy from a diverse array of dedicated sources. Unfortunately, with the pending closure of the two remaining, operational, coal-fired units at Xcel Energy’s Comanche Generating Station in Pueblo, things are getting tricky. Comanche is the state’s largest power plant, with an original capacity of 1,410 megawatts. But its Unit 1 was shut down in 2022 as part of the statewide phaseout of coal-burning power plants. Unit 2 now is set to close at the end of this year, with Comanche Unit 3 scheduled for closure in 2030. It’s all part of Gov. Jared Polis’ green-energy agenda, which aims to move away from fossil fuels like coal in favor of renewable energy sources like wind a...
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Xcel Energy’s Plans for 2026 Rate Hike Draws Pushback from Communities
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DENVER7, Approved, State

Xcel Energy’s Plans for 2026 Rate Hike Draws Pushback from Communities

By Claire Lavezzorio | Denver7 Denver7 is listening to the community after Xcel Energy announced proposed rate hikes. COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Denver7 is listening to the community after Xcel Energy announced Friday it wants to increase electric rates in Colorado by nearly 10% in 2026. Commerce City resident Lucy Molina told Denver7 it's going to force some families to make difficult choices. "Do I pay my electric bill, or do I eat?" said Molina. Robert Kenney, President of Xcel Energy Colorado, told Denver7 Friday that the increase is to recover investments in safety and reliability, like transmission, distribution, and generating facilities the company has made over the past 3 years. The average residential customer would see their bill increase $9.94 per mont...
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Xcel Seeks One-Year Extension to Keep Comanche Coal Unit Running as Grid Pressures Rise
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Xcel Seeks One-Year Extension to Keep Comanche Coal Unit Running as Grid Pressures Rise

By Scott Weiser | Colorado Politics Colorado’s largest utility company has petitioned energy regulators to push back the retirement of a coal-fired, electrical generating unit located in the Southern part of the state from December 2025 to the end of 2026. The Polis administration is backing the petition. Comanche Unit 2 is one of three coal-fired units at the Pueblo-based Comanche Generating Station. In its petition, Xcel Energy cites as reason an extended outage at the adjacent Unit 3, surging peak demand and supply chain hurdles. The petition underscores admissions from both Xcel and state officials about a potential generating resource shortfall exacerbated by a failure at the Comanche Unit 3, taking it off-line for the next 11 months, and by delays in bringing new “rene...
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Colorado Moves to Enforce Major Utility Emissions Cuts Despite Cost Concerns
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DENVER7, Approved, State

Colorado Moves to Enforce Major Utility Emissions Cuts Despite Cost Concerns

By: Shannon Ogden | Denver7 The PUC will require utilities like Xcel Energy to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 41% by 2035. DENVER — Environmental groups are celebrating a win in Colorado after the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) agreed to tougher standards on greenhouse gas emissions from Colorado utilities like Xcel Energy. At a meeting Wednesday, commissioners decided to require utilities to reduce these pollutants by 41% by 2035. Sierra Club Colorado was one of the groups arguing for these higher reductions. "I think we should feel proud that we pushed them on this. I think we're really happy with the 41% because it keeps us moving," said Sarah Tresseder, energy organizer of Sierra Club Colorado.  In 2021, Colorado passed the first-in-the-nation "Clean Heat Law" r...
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Xcel’s costly coal exit: Public interest group warns plan could stick consumers with the tab
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Westword, Approved, State

Xcel’s costly coal exit: Public interest group warns plan could stick consumers with the tab

By Catie Cheshire | Westword One consumer protection group is calling for the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to shrink Xce's giant proposal. As Xcel Energy works to decommission coal plants across Colorado, one proposal is catching heat. Watchdog organization Colorado Public Interest Research Group believes Xcel’s proposal to replace the Comanche 3 coal plant in Pueblo will result in unnecessary costs to customers. The group's executive director Danny Katz, says the proposal is too big for southern Colorado as his organization calls on the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to pare back the proposal. According to Xcel’s filings with the PUC, the utility wants to replace energy production from Comanche 3’s coal units with a mix of wind, solar and natu...
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Ratepayer risk? State law forces Xcel into costly ‘Markets+’ grid deal
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Approved, State, The Colorado Sun

Ratepayer risk? State law forces Xcel into costly ‘Markets+’ grid deal

By Mark Jaffe | Colorado Sun Xcel Energy must join wholesale electric market to meet Colorado law. Execs say big upfront cost is best economic and operational choice. Xcel Energy’s plan to join a short-term, wholesale electric market is drawing fire from critics who, in hearings before state regulators this week, said that the price tag is too high and the benefits are minimal. The market for purchasing day-ahead power Xcel Energy wants to join, Markets+, is run by the Southwest Power Pool, or SPP, whose grid stretches across all or parts of 14 states from Texas to North Dakota. In hearings before the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, business and consumer groups are challenging the $30 million in upfront costs to join Markets+ and Xcel Energy executives are defen...
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