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Tag: Xcel Energy

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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Colorado’s clean-energy crusade looks a lot like Germany’s—and that should scare us
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Substack, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Colorado’s clean-energy crusade looks a lot like Germany’s—and that should scare us

By Michael Hancock | Commentary, Michael Hancock’s Undercurrent A warning for Colorado before it repeats Europe’s green mistakes. Germany tried to save the planet — and ended up saving nothing, not even itself. The same ideology that shut down its nuclear plants, drove up energy prices, and gutted its industries is now being repackaged in Colorado under the banner of “climate justice.” The warnings are flashing red, but our leaders seem too busy chasing virtue to notice the cliff ahead. Germany once led the world in renewable energy. It also now leads it in self-inflicted economic decline. After spending hundreds of billions of euros to “go green,” the country that once symbolized industrial excellence now faces soaring energy prices, factory closures, and an exodus of jobs. ...
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Pueblo Fights Back as Colorado’s Coal Plants Close and Jobs Disappear
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Colorado Politics, Approved, Local

Pueblo Fights Back as Colorado’s Coal Plants Close and Jobs Disappear

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics As Colorado darts toward a future powered by “clean” energy, a battle is brewing in Pueblo, where coal closures, union jobs and lost tax revenue collide with a community demanding a solution as its power plants are a primary target for a shutdown. Between 2025 and 2031, six more coal-fired power plants in Colorado are scheduled to be shut down or converted to another energy source, such as natural gas. With more than 800 jobs to be affected, another three plants are on the list for future closures. The closures are raising alarm bells, notably for the unions that count the power plant workers as members. A group has put forward an action plan called the Colorado Energy Compact, calling for a “balanced and sustainable energy policy” and a...
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$640M Xcel settlement brings closure—and uncertainty for Marshall Fire survivors
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

$640M Xcel settlement brings closure—and uncertainty for Marshall Fire survivors

By Sarah Horbacewicz | CBS Colorado Survivors of the Marshall Fire are waiting to see their offer of the $640 million settlement from Xcel Energy announced on Wednesday. Jenn Hart in Louisville is one of the more than 4,000 plaintiffs in the suit. She says her home was torn down to the studs after smoke damaged her home. Now, family photos are some of the few remaining pieces of Hart's former home. Reflecting on those that were saved when they evacuated, and those that were left behind, she described an engagement photo, "It was sitting in this corner on a cabinet, and it wasn't blue before the fire," she said. Now, more than three years after the fire, she's settling back into her home and seeing a payout from Xcel.  "It's bittersweet, right? So it's not what we were h...
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Xcel reaches $640M agreement to resolve all Marshall fire claims
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denvergazette.com, Approved, Local

Xcel reaches $640M agreement to resolve all Marshall fire claims

By Michael Braithwaite | The Denver Gazette Xcel Energy reached an agreement in principle to settle all claims relating to the 2021 Marshall fire, the organization said in a statement Wednesday. The organization will pay north of $640 million to resolve all the pending litigation, about $350 million of which will be funded by its remaining insurance coverage, Xcel said. Individual agreements will still remain subject to final documentation and deliberation with individual plaintiffs. The December 2021 fire destroyed more than 1,000 businesses and homes in Louisville, Superior, and unincorporated Boulder County, taking two lives and forcing 37,000 people to evacuate. Despite the agreement, Xcel said its equipment did not cause or contribute to the fire and it does not admit any ...
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