The Rotten Political Incentives of the Utility Industry
The monopoly electric utility business model is rife with problems. Chief among them is the regulatory capture it invites. Monopoly utilities tend to reflect the political environment in which they are situated. This is no accident. They know where their bread is buttered and are more than happy to play along with the ambitious energy […]
Colorado’s Energy Future: The High Cost of 100% Renewable Electricity by 2040
Colorado Governor Jared Polis (D.) campaigned for his first term in office on a platform of transitioning the state to 100 percent renewable energy by 2040. In his first year in office, Polis unveiled an official government “roadmap” to do just that. Since then, he has signed into law no fewer than 55 climate bills […]
Denver Post Article on Green Building Codes Misses the Point
Green building codes are back in the news again in Colorado. The Denver Post has a new report updating readers on how the rebuilding process is going for Marshall fire victims in Louisville and Superior. Evidently, many homeowners are choosing to rebuild under the latest and most stringent building energy code standards that featured heavily in the […]
Members of New Joint Committee to Investigate Utility Rates Announced
The state has announced the official makeup of a new legislative committee dedicated to investigating rising utility bills. Comprised of lawmakers of both parties from each legislative chamber, the members of the six-person Joint Select Committee on Rising Utility Rates will be as follows: From the Senate- President Steve Fenberg (D.) Lisa Cutter (D.) Minority […]
Dr. Polis Prescribes Even Higher Utility Bills
Primum non nocere. Translation: first, do no harm. It’s a phrase that has been part of the medical ethics lexicon since the 17th century. Coloradans would have been wise to apply it to energy policy some two decades ago, when the eco-left began politicizing energy production, electricity, and our grid. Flanked by low-income customers, Governor […]
Jake Fogleman Talks Xcel Energy Bills, Colorado Climate Policy on the George Brauchler Show
Policy analyst Jake Fogleman joined the George Brauchler Show on 710 KNUS to talk about the sky-high energy bills Xcel customers have been seeing this winter due to a pancaking series of rate hikes granted by the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. They also discuss who is ultimately to blame for those rate hikes, the reality […]
Fossil Fuels Bail Out Colorado’s Grid Yet Again
Coloradans might want to begin brushing up on their German. At least enough to be familiar with the word Dunkelflaute, which roughly translates to “dark doldrums.” The term describes a weather pattern of low wind and limited sunlight that makes generating electricity from renewables nearly impossible. The event is relatively common in northern and western Europe during […]
Xcel Proposes Yet Another Rate Hike
Colorado’s largest utility is back before the PUC requesting another rate increase, this time a $312.2 million bump in electric rates. The request is just the latest to arrive in 2022, a year that has come to represent a cost-hike bonanza for the energy monopoly. The PUC already approved a $182.2 million electric rate hike […]
Xcel Gives Up Plan to Expand Hydropower in Colorado
Pumped-storage hydropower won’t be the answer to Xcel’s need for dispatchable zero-carbon energy. At least not for now. According to the Colorado Sun: Xcel Energy has killed its plan to build a hydropower project in Unaweep Canyon. The utility on Wednesday morning told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that it was withdrawing its application for a […]
Fudging the Numbers: How Colorado Policymakers Mislead on Energy Costs
An increasingly common theme of the energy policy debate here in Colorado, particularly among renewables advocates, is the trumpeting of cost statistics purporting to show the affordability benefits of transitioning to wind and solar over legacy fossil fuel plants. Take, for instance, a recent statement made by Governor Jared Polis during a gubernatorial debate late […]
Reliance on Solar Projects Threatening Colorado’s Outlook on Grid Reliability
As Colorado moves to retire legacy fossil-fuel power plants in order to meet Governor Polis’s goal of 100% renewable energy by 2040, the state is increasingly reliant on wind and solar to meet our electricity needs. And now, thanks to supply chain snarls hitting the solar industry, our ability to keep the lights on next […]
Sky High Gas Bills Coming This Winter
Last week I wrote about the costs and consequences of underrating natural gas infrastructure, which are currently most pronounced in New England this winter in the form of exorbitant bills and inadequate supply. But it turns out Colorado, while being in better shape than our northeastern counterparts, is not immune to the disruptions roiling the […]
