2030 Ready: Our Colorado Clean Energy Plan
![Solar panels and wind turbines](/sites/blackhillsenergy.com/files/2022-05/colorado_clean_energy_plan.jpg)
Our path to achieving 80% carbon reduction by 2030
Overview
Our customers value renewable energy, and we are proud our Colorado energy supply is one of the cleanest in the state, powered 100% by natural gas-fired generation and renewable energy. With 2030 Ready: Our Colorado Clean Energy Plan, we are proposing to power our customers’ homes and businesses with nearly 70% renewable energy by 2030.
Our 2030 Ready Plan establishes a roadmap and preferred resource portfolio to cost-effectively achieve the state of Colorado’s “80 x 30” requirement, calling upon electric utilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by a minimum of 80% by 2030.
Highlights of our 2030 Ready Plan:
- 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 based on 2005 levels
- 70% of our customers’ electricity generated by carbon-free sources by 2030
- 400 megawatts of new renewable resources, including wind, solar and battery storage
- Opportunities for customer bill savings and long-term bill stability
Our 2030 Ready Plan builds on a clean energy journey that began over a decade ago when we became the first utility in the state to move away from coal.
Frequently asked questions
What are you announcing?
We are announcing our Colorado Clean Energy Plan, “2030 Ready,” submitted to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission on May 27, 2022. Our 2030 Ready Plan serves as a roadmap to cost-effectively achieve the State of Colorado’s “80 x 30” requirement, calling for a minimum 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Incorporated within our 2030 Ready Plan are two comprehensive documents filed every four years with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, the Electric Resource Plan and the Renewable Energy Standard Compliance Plan.
What factors were considered in the planning process?
The resource planning process is grounded in our commitment to our customers and the steps necessary to provide them with safe, reliable and cost-effective energy in the near- and long-term. Through extensive analysis and modeling, we arrived at a preferred generation portfolio to meet our customers’ energy needs, while cost-effectively achieving the state’s “80 x 30” emissions reduction requirements.
How will Black Hills Energy achieve the required “80 x 30” emissions reduction?
Our 2030 Ready Plan proposes the addition of approximately 400 MW of new, utility-scale, clean energy resources, including wind, solar and battery storage. With these additional resources on our Southern Colorado system, we would achieve an 80% emissions reduction by 2030.
What percentage of renewable energy will be on your system in 2030?
As a result of our 2030 Ready Plan, about 70% of our customers’ electricity needs will be powered by renewable energy in 2030.
What combination of new renewable resources are you proposing?
The proposed addition of 400 MW of new renewable energy resources would include wind, solar and battery storage. The final combination of resources will be determined during a competitive solicitation process directed by the Colorado PUC.
Where will the renewable energy come from?
The acquisition of new renewable energy resources will be determined during the second phase of this regulatory proceeding, after the Colorado PUC has reviewed and approved our Electric Resource Plan. We issued a request for proposals (RFP) on July 31, 2023, open to all renewable energy developers. Through a competitive solicitation process, independent evaluators will determine the most cost-effective resources to achieve our goals.
When will the new renewable energy be placed into service?
Upon approval of a winning bid, the new renewable energy resources would be added to Black Hills Energy’s Southern Colorado system as soon as 2025 to meet the 2030 requirement.
Will all this renewable energy on your system affect system reliability?
No. Our ability to serve our customers with 70% of their power supplied by renewable energy by 2030 is possible in large part due to the flexibility provided by the Pueblo Airport Generating Station (PAGS). The power supplied by PAGS, our modern, highly-efficient natural gas-fired generating station, is critical to this effort. Because of the intermittent nature of renewable energy-based generation – meaning, the wind doesn’t always blow, and the sun doesn’t always shine – we must have a consistent source of generation available to be dispatched at all times. PAGS is the most efficient means of maintaining reliable service to our customers, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
Does your 2030 Ready Plan signal a change in the way you operate in Colorado?
Not at all. Leadership in emissions reduction is nothing new for Black Hills Energy in Colorado – we retired our last Colorado coal plant in 2013, becoming the first electric utility fleet in the state to be coal-free. Over the past nine years, we have replaced emission-intensive coal plants with lower emission natural gas generation, wind generation, and solar generation, while maintaining system safety and reliability. Our 2030 Ready Plan is built upon years of phased-in renewable generation developments that have resulted in our energy supply being one of the cleanest in the state, powered 100 percent by natural gas and renewable energy.