Special to The Colorado Sun
Xcel Energy needs a smarter, greener electric grid. But should Colorado customers foot the $344 million bill for it?
If the Public Utilities Commission OK's Xcel’s largest ever rate increase, electric bills for Colorado customers will have increased 20% since the start of the year
Rural electric co-ops get shocking estimates of the cost to break up with Tri-State Generation
Nine members of Tri-State asked what they’d have to pay to leave the association. Now they want to know the formula used to calculate the bills.
An oil company that no longer exists faces a $344,000 fine Colorado doesn’t expect to collect. But that’s the point.
COGCC spent four years chasing a rogue oil company that left a mess in Huerfano County. Levying a fine it can’t collect lets the state grab a bond posted by Alta Mesa Resources to do the clean up.
If you’re an Xcel Energy customer, you’re getting a “smart meter” that will charge more for electricity used during peak periods
All 1.6 million Xcel Energy customers in Colorado will transition to time-of-use billing, which is intended to encourage people to reduce consumption during certain times of day.
Tri-State must tell members seeking cleaner, cheaper energy how much it would cost to break up, regulators say
Nine members of the association, including United Power, asked more than a year ago how much it would cost to break contracts running to 2050. Federal regulators gave Tri-State 30 days to clear the air.
Colorado doesn’t want to foot the bill for abandoned oil and gas wells. Here’s how it will avoid picking up the tab.
Senate Bill 181 told the state to strengthen “financial assurance” regs. COGCC now wants operators to guarantee the clean up of each well and the cost could run to the billions.
Some of the worst ozone pollution in the U.S. settles along the Front Range. New rules to fix it are ahead.
Colorado has made some progress toward reducing the chemical dangerous to human health. But it will take leaning on automobiles and oil and gas producers to really move the needle.
87 Front Range oil and gas wells ordered to shut down after operator KP Kauffman fails to clean up spills
Ditch companies and farmers have been harmed by KP Kauffman’s unfinished work to mop up after flowlines leaked, state regulators say
How much damage does climate change cause in Colorado? Leaders are trying to put a price tag on it.
There are growing efforts -- in Washington and at the Colorado statehouse -- are trying to determine the social cost of carbon so they can put a price on greenhouse gases for the economic damage they wreak
Colorado’s big electric users could get a 30% discount on power under Xcel Energy’s incentive plan
The Public Utilities Commission reluctantly OK’d the program, worried that it won’t benefit areas most in need of economic development help.
Two Colorado oil companies announce merger, the latest in a consolidating industry
Bonanza Creek Energy and Extraction Oil & Gas are combining to create Civitas Energy
Effort to force Colorado to cut greenhouse emissions faster exposes exasperation with Polis administration
“I am highly frustrated where we are now,” Sen. Kerry Donovan, a Vail Democrat, said.
Closing all of Xcel’s coal-fired power plants will cost Colorado consumers $1.4 billion
Shuttering plants to meet the state’s greenhouse gas emissions goals carries a hefty price tag, including costs of bonds to finance the wind down
This Erie neighborhood is ground zero for Colorado’s collision of fracking and housing
Families who bought in Colliers Hill thought they were moving to an outdoor paradise. But the fine print in Colorado’s oil and gas regulations has rattled their lives.
Colorado gave local governments more power to regulate oil and gas. And some are using it.
The legislature’s 2019 overhaul of drilling rules through Senate Bill 181 empowered some cities and counties to prioritize safety. But other energy-friendly areas have held back on flexing their new muscles.
Colorado Democrats want to accelerate the governor’s emissions reduction roadmap. Polis says he’s not on board.
Climate goals and deadlines to reach them would be set in state law under Senate Bill 200. Some of the work would be funded by charging polluters a fee for each ton of carbon dioxide they release.
Co-ops trying to leave Tri-State say the electric utility is “stonewalling” by refusing to calculate the price to exit
Tri-State is cleaning up the way it generates electricity, but 7 members, including United Power in Colorado, want to know if they can afford a greener deal outside the partnership.
Xcel Energy floats “Power Pathway” plan to bring wind, solar power to cities from rural Colorado
Xcel still needs the blessing of state regulators and the agreement of other Colorado utilities before the $1.7 billion project to build 560 miles of transmission lines proceeds.
Breakdowns, shutdowns and cost overruns plague Xcel’s Comanche 3 coal-fired power plant, investigation finds
Electricity from the state-of-the-art coal-fired power plant near Pueblo costs 45% more than forecast, Colorado Public Utilities Commission reports. Xcel says Comanche will be used as a backup to renewable generation after 2030.
Xcel plans to double its renewable energy generation by 2030. It’ll cost consumers $8 billion to do it.
Big new solar and wind projects are planned to get Xcel Energy to 80% renewable generation in Colorado, but fossil fuels still will be needed to balance the system.
