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From rebates and EV chargers to solar projects and industry awards, 2019 was an impressive year of innovation at Colorado’s electric cooperatives.

Many co-ops, including San Isabel Electric and Mountain Parks Electric, gave local community businesses tens of thousands of dollars of rebates for everything from lighting upgrades to heat pumps. Mountain View Electric Association, based in Limon, gave away six whole-home LED updates to consumer-member residences across its service territory.

New EV charging stations were installed in White River Electric and Yampa Valley Electric Association’s territories thanks to Charge Ahead Colorado grants. San Luis Valley Rural Electric Cooperative added an EV charger at its headquarters in Monte Vista as part of the services it offers.

KC Electric Association in Hugo announced it has three wind farms coming in its service territory on the eastern plains, expected to be in service by the end of 2020.

Tri-State announced its Spanish Peaks Solar project, to be located in southern Colorado. It is expected to be completed in 2023. Tri-State also announced its responsible energy plan in pursuit of a cleaner and lower-cost resource portfolio.

In 2019, Brighton-based United Power celebrated 10 years of community solar. Sangre de Cristo Electric held its first community solar project ribbon cutting at Trout Creek Solar. This solar site sits on Colorado corrections facility land in Buena Vista. Holy Cross Energy is also repurposing land for the co-op’s new Woody Creek Solar farm, to be built on land owned by the Aspen Consolidated Sanitation District. And San Luis Valley REC took loads of supplies on horseback to build a new solar site atop Turret Peak.

United Power earned a place on a top 10 utility industry list for its battery storage system and White River Electric Association’s Piceance Creek Solar was named the 2019 Utility Scale Project of the Year.

To read more about these innovative projects, stay tuned to this Energy Innovations webpage.

Stakeholders from all parts of the electric industry in Colorado were among the approximately 375 people attending the CREA Energy Innovations Summit October 28 in downtown Denver.

A lively discussion of what is needed for Colorado’s electric industry, particularly the electric co-ops, to transition to more renewables opened the event. Former Gov. Bill Ritter, now with the Center for the New Energy Economy, and Duane Highley, new CEO of Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, talked about the innovations on the horizon that both of their organizations are pursuing.

The day-long conference also included controversial luncheon speaker Michael Shellenberger, a pro-nuclear energy environmentalist named by Time magazine as a “hero of the environment.”

Other topics discussed in breakouts during the day included breakout sessions on community choice aggregation, micro grids, new technologies and beneficial electrification. There was also an update on energy storage before the day wrapped up with an update of regional electricity markets for Colorado.

Venders also shared their products and services and helped cover the conference’s costs.

To hear the opening discussion and several other sessions, click here. To review slides presented during panel discussions, click here.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy ranked Colorado 14th in the nation on its 2019 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard. This annual report measures states’ progress on a variety of energy efficiency efforts including utility policies, transportation policies, building energy efficiency policies, combined heat and power, and state government initiatives.

Colorado electric cooperatives contribute to this ranking by supporting innovative energy efficiency projects and initiatives on many levels from providing programs for cooperative consumer-members to working with the state legislature. Colorado is among a handful of states that recently renewed, extended or strengthened energy efficiency targets for utilities and statewide programs to lay the groundwork for future savings.

The power that Mountain Parks Electric delivers to local homes and businesses is becoming greener and greener as the Granby-based electric co-op incorporates even more solar into its generation mix.

Contractors installed a large 1-MW commercial solar array near Walden — Whiskey Hill Solar— which begins production later this year. And Sifers Solar, another 1-MW project, will be dedicated and celebrated on November 7. With these new solar sites, MPE will power approximately 600 homes with locally-generated solar power.

Another solar option that Mountain Parks utilizes is purchasing power from the innovative floating solar array at the town of Walden’s drinking water treatment facility. This 208-panel array is the first of its kind in Colorado and can produce up to 75 kWh of energy.

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association is pursuing an aggressive Responsible Energy Plan to transition to a cleaner energy portfolio, while ensuring reliability, increasing member flexibility and with a goal to lower wholesale rates.

“Our membership and board are unified in our pursuit of a cleaner, reliable and lower-cost resource portfolio,” said Rick Gordon, chairman of the cooperative’s board of directors. “We are making a strong and unequivocal commitment to transform Tri-State’s resource portfolio in a prudent and responsible manner.”

Tri-State’s Board of Directors has passed several resolutions to support the development of a plan that will guide the cooperative in its energy transition. Tri-State’s Responsible Energy Plan will set goals and pathways to:
• Comply with aggressive carbon reduction, renewable energy and resource planning requirements
• Ensure the reliability and affordability of Tri-State’s wholesale power system
• Strive to lower wholesale rates while maintaining Tri-State’s strong financial position

“Tri-State’s Responsible Energy Plan will define how wholesale cooperatives leverage disruptive technology opportunities to strengthen and empower members and the communities they serve,” said Duane Highley, Tri- State’s chief executive officer. “We will be clean, reliable, flexible and affordable, and do it all within our not-for- profit cooperative business model.”

The plan will recognize the significant accomplishments Tri-State and its members have achieved, identify goals and processes for carbon reduction and renewable energy development, and identify the external policy changes needed to fulfill the plan. Additional components of the plan include and exploring opportunities with solar and energy services providers to make community-scale solar, energy storage and electric vehicle infrastructure more available to our members at a lower cost.

Partnership with Gov. Ritter, Center for the New Energy Economy to support Responsible Energy Plan

A key part of Tri-State’s approach is an engagement with former Colorado Governor Bill Ritter and the Center for the New Energy Economy (CNEE) at Colorado State University to facilitate a collaborative stakeholder process for Tri-State that will contribute to and help define the Responsible Energy Plan.

Located at Colorado State University, the CNEE “educates, convenes, and inspires decision-makers to create policies that facilitate America’s equitable transition to a clean energy economy.”

“My team and I welcome the opportunity to work with Tri-State in facilitating this stakeholder process,” said former Governor Ritter. “At a time when the power sector is transitioning in a dynamic way, assisting Tri-State in developing a resource plan that reflects that transition is a true privilege.”

“As a cooperative, we understand that transformative change requires understanding and engagement with stakeholders,” said Highley. “Governor Ritter and the Center for the New Energy Economy will convene for Tri- State the best and brightest to surface ideas that will inform and advance our planning.”

Cooperative’s membership actively considering contract changes for more flexibility, local renewables

Tri-State’s membership is currently considering greater contract flexibility for members, including partial requirements contracts that would allow for more local renewable energy projects.

As a cooperative, Tri-State’s members govern the terms of the cooperative’s wholesale power contracts through the board of directors. A contract committee of the membership, including representatives from each member system, are developing recommendations to the board

“Our members are developing recommendations to make their wholesale power contracts more flexible,” said Gordon. “With partial requirements contracts, members could increase local renewables while also maintaining the value and security of being a member of Tri-State.”

New mission statement reinforces responsibility

Tri-State’s Board of Directors also voted to update the cooperative’s mission statement at their July meeting in support of the broad transition underway. Tri-State’s mission is now “to provide our member systems a reliable, affordable and responsible supply of electricity in accordance with cooperative principles.”

The statement’s change to address responsibility speaks to Tri-State’s mission as an electric cooperative to be responsible to its members and the communities they serve, as well as the cooperative’s responsibility to be resilient, compliant and a good steward of the land, air and water.

Proactive agenda will address electric industry challenges and cooperative utility needs

As part of the Responsible Energy Plan, Tri-State will advance a proactive agenda to address electric utility and cooperative needs for a successful, reliable and affordable carbon reduction and renewable energy transition.

Tri-State will address key issues including developing Western regional electricity markets, assisting impacted energy-producing communities, continuing and developing new tax incentives, addressing permitting for transmission line and power plants, and reconsidering the value of hydropower to ensure the Responsible Energy Plan’s success.

“As we transition, we cannot make these changes alone,” said Highley. “Our industry requires working with a wide group of stakeholders to address the numerous challenges that are more successfully addressed with partners.”

“We recognize that Tri-State facilities, employees and communities will be affected by the changes ahead,” said Highley. “Regulatory rulemakings and significant study must be completed to understand how to comply with new laws while preserving reliability and affordability, but we know our system and operations will change.”

Tri-State actions to date support plan goals

In the past 10 years, Tri-State and its members have taken significant steps that lay the groundwork for the Responsible Energy Plan. These include:
• In early 2019, Tri-State announced it is adding an additional 100 megawatts of solar and 104 megawatts of wind to its resource portfolio, which will increase its wind and solar energy by 45 percent. Tri-State currently has more than 475 megawatts of utility-scale wind, solar and other renewable projects in its portfolio.
• In June 2019, Tri-State issued its sixth renewable request for proposals since 2007.
• In 2018, nearly a third of the energy consumed through Tri-State’s members came from renewable energy. Less than half of Tri-State’s renewable portfolio is from federal hydropower.
• Tri-State is reducing its use of coal by increasingly accessing market power when advantageous, the retirement of San Juan Generating Station capacity in New Mexico in 2017, and the retirement of Nucla Station in early 2020 and Craig Station Unit 1 by the end of 2025.
• Tri-State’s Energy Efficiency Products Program, which has been in place for decades, had record levels of funding for members in 2018.