4 days ago
Colorado mayors, business leaders warn of dangers if Xcel Energy expansion isn't approved
Xcel Energy filed a proposal for approval with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission in October of 2024, but interest in the topic is quickly garnering attention.
Following a report on opposition to the plan, dozens of community and business leaders have gathered in support of it.
"Thirty-eight mayors representing over half the state's population are really in favor of expanding the electric capacity for Excel Energy because of the long-term and long-range impacts it has on the state," said Heigh Williams, the executive director of the Metro Mayors Caucus and the former mayor of Thornton. The caucus sent a letter to the Public Utilities Commission strongly urging them to approve Xcel's capacity increase request.
"I did have a couple of mayors who said, look, we have projects ready to go, but Xcel can't power these projects right now because we don't have the electrical capacity to do that," she said.
Williams believes Colorado's statewide issue of affordable housing simply can't and won't be addressed without increased access to power.
"The state legislature has been very clear the last couple of years, along with the governor, that they want more housing, and they want more housing around transit-oriented development," said Williams. "Guess what? We need the electric grid capacity to do all of those things."
And as for businesses, Williams believes a denial from the PUC would send a loud message to the business world.
"I think it puts a 'we're closed' sign out, you know, like Colorado can't provide the energy for a new business," she said.
That's something Chris Fellows, a long-time Colorado land developer, is an expert on.
"Xcel is really a government-sanctioned monopoly for providing power, and then if the PUC limits their ability to deliver the power, it sterilizes the growth," said Fellows. "It's a catch-22."
Fellows is a member of the East Metro Area Business Coalition, composed of dozens of property owners who, combined, own around 40,000 acres in the eastern portion of the Denver metro area.
"Everybody put together a forecast that showed how much property they owned, what it was zoned for, what the expected growth and demand would be for that project," said Fellows. "Then we provided that to Xcel so they could see our demands. We also submitted an intervener petition in the PUC process that's going right now to say that, hey, this is something we're concerned about."
And concerns among different leaders stem from the same place.
"We need to make sure there's enough energy to provide for the growth," said Fellows.
The public was originally anticipating a vote on the plan Wednesday, but folks at the PUC have indicated there could be several more discussions in the coming weeks.
