Xcel Energy

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

The Colorado Sun, Approved, State / / , , , , ,

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 defending it as the best economic and operational choice.

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The state’s largest utility will file a new wildfire mitigation plan next month. What might that look like?

Approved, State, The Colorado Sun / / ,

An inquiry by state regulators into Xcel Energy’s April “public safety” electricity outage — which created chaos in parts of the Front Range — has yielded a list of potential steps utilities and communities might take to limit future problems.

The state’s largest utility will file a new wildfire mitigation plan next month. What might that look like? Read More »

Orr, Rolling: Xcel power blackout showcases the high cost of unreliable electricity

completecolorado.com, Approved, Commentary / / ,

Hundreds of thousands of Xcel Energy customers in Colorado recenlty lost power as high winds damaged power lines, and Xcel preemptively shut off the power to 55,000 customers to mitigate the risk of wildfires. Among the customers who lost power were homeowners and small businesses who received little to no warning

Orr, Rolling: Xcel power blackout showcases the high cost of unreliable electricity Read More »