By Reed Karaim Holy Cross Energy has an ambitious goal: 100% renewable energy sources by 2030. It’s a tall order, complicated by the central Colorado co-op’s mountainous service territory, which isn’t well-suited to wind or solar power generation. But just 100 miles or so to the east of the co-op’s Glenwood Springs headquarters, the Front […]
Steamboat Springs-based electric cooperative Yampa Valley Electric Association and its fiber internet subsidiary, Luminate, recently announced a project partnership with South Routt School District. Luminate will help bring internet access and services to students, teachers and other district staff who currently lack stable and reliable internet for virtual learning. The district applied for and was […]
In February, Durango-based electric cooperative La Plata Electric Association announced exciting electric vehicle news for two communities it serves. The town of Bayfield and LPEA joined together to bring 24/7 access to a free Level II EV charging station located in Bayfield’s town hall parking lot. A grant from the Colorado Energy Office’s Charge Ahead […]
Delta-Montrose Electric Association connected Montrose’s first DC electric vehicle fast-charging station in January. The electric co-op owns and operates the two ChargePoint Dual Platform fast chargers that were made possible with help from a grant from the Colorado Energy Office’s Charge Ahead program. DMEA donated in-kind labor to bring the electric service to the EV […]
By Sharon Sullivan Women have played an important role in the electric cooperative movement since those first rural wives and mothers used their egg money to pay the $5 membership fee required to sign up for the new electric cooperatives in the 1930s and ’40s. They made sure the electric poles, wires and much-needed electricity […]
Steamboat Springs-based electric cooperative Yampa Valley Electric Association unveiled and energized a new EV charging station on February 8. YVEA’s partnership with Routt County, the town of Yampa, the Department of Local Affairs, the Colorado Energy Office and Travelodge by Wyndham brought the Level 3 EV charging station to the area. Located at the Travelodge […]
Ridgway-based electric cooperative San Miguel Power Association has developed programs for income-qualified consumer-members who struggle to pay their electric bills. SMPA designed these I.Q. programs to enhance the co-op’s home efficiency program — the I.Q. Weatherization Program — and to increase consumer-members’ access to community solar. Assistance from the I.Q. Weatherization Program begins with a […]
Durango-based La Plata Electric Association collaborated with Durango School District 9-R to apply for a grant to purchase a fully-electric school bus and install the necessary charging infrastructure. The district was awarded over $300,000 for the equipment through the grant from the Regional Air Quality Council’s ALT Fuels Colorado program. The grant to the school […]
By Sarah Smith Wildfires ravaged Colorado this summer, wreaking havoc across the state and scorching more than 665,000 acres of land. The 2020 wildfire season marked the worst in the Centennial State’s recent history, and the Colorado Rural Electric Association, representing Colorado’s electric cooperatives, and its member cooperatives are determined to serve as advocates for […]
Brighton-based United Power recently completed construction on its newest solar project, Rattlesnake Solar Farm. This solar farm will provide an additional 6 megawatts of energy to the electric cooperative’s renewable energy portfolio, bringing United Power to more than 43 MWs of local, utility-scale solar. This is in addition to the more than 5,500 residential rooftop […]