This op-ed, featured in the Denver Gazette, is written by Raymond H. Gonzales and
Wendy Mitchell.
Colorado’s economic future and quality of life depend on energy. Meeting future energy
needs is not simply a matter of engineering, but a matter of planning with clarity and
conviction.
In the metro Denver region, we need Xcel Energy to deliver what’s needed right now
and prepare for energy needs just around the corner. They’ve done that with their Just
Transition Solicitation and the Updated Base Load Forecast within, which is before the
governor’s regulatory body called the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). The PUC
should approve it without additional delay.
When economic development professionals compete to have projects select Colorado
over other states, ensuring access to reliable, affordable, and innovative energy
solutions is essential.
Our leadership in advanced industries, ambition to solve tomorrow’s challenges, and
commitment to attracting the best ideas and talent all depend on the strength and
readiness of our energy system. If we want a future that lifts communities, grows
opportunity, and secures prosperity for the next generation, we have to power it.
System capacity cannot be expanded overnight, and the infrastructure decisions made
today will define the limits and the possibilities of the Colorado we leave to those who
come next. If forecasts are artificially constrained by the PUC, they do not produce
savings or stability, but rather, delay development, drive up costs, and erode confidence
among those seeking to invest, grow, create, invent and revolutionize.
Airports know how much electricity it takes to run the operations of today and the
expansions of tomorrow. Manufacturing facilities know how much electricity their
production requires right now and how much more is required to expand to create more
products and more good jobs. Data centers know how much electricity is needed so
Coloradans can digitally access the rest of the world without delay.
These current and future customers work with Xcel to carefully plan for how much
electricity production is needed now, and how much we need to add to ensure future
reliability at reasonable prices. When we need electricity, the switch has to work every
single time. Nobody wants rolling blackouts or brownouts on hot or cold days, but that
can happen when regulators artificially limit electricity supply.
If the PUC has somehow concluded that it knows better than the economic
development experts, Xcel Energy, and the operators of airports, manufacturing
facilities, and data centers about how much electricity it takes to run each. Ironically,
after insisting for years that everything be electrified, the PUC is delaying the approval
of the load expansion required to actually do it. Being authorized to plan for the Updated
Base Load Forecast allows costs to be spread over a larger population creating cost
efficiencies benefiting consumer rate payers.
We can’t wait. We cannot tell a bottling plant, data center, or home builder to choose
Colorado if it will take another 18-24 months or more before we can tell them if the PUC
will approve the needed electricity.
Colorado stands at a crossroads, and the decisions before the commission will echo far
beyond utility dockets or regulatory calendars. They will shape whether this state
remains a magnet for talent, a launchpad for innovation, and a home for those who
believe in the possibility of building something better.
But vision alone is not enough, we must match it with the infrastructure that makes
growth possible. The future is coming, and Colorado should be ready to power it.
Raymond Gonzales is President of the Metro Denver Economic Development
Corporation (EDC). Wendy Mitchell is President and CEO at Aurora Economic
Development Council.
