Colorado Regulators, Stakeholders Approve New Wind Build

Big Colorado wind power project wins approval

October 1, 2106 (The Daily Progress)

“…[A 300 turbine, 600 MW wind installation and a 90-mile transmission line, which would be one of the biggest U.S. wind electric power projects, has] won approval from the Colorado Public Utilities Commission…[The PUC gave its approval after Xcel Energy and a large number of local government agencies] reached an agreement…[The Rush Creek] project will likely cost as much as $1.1 billion and it is expected to eliminate a million tons of carbon emissions compared with other energy sources…Rush Creek could have the transmission capacity to move up to 2,000 megawatts of renewable energy from that part of Colorado…Progressive 15, an economic development group promoting northeastern Colorado, said wind energy is becoming a major part of Colorado's rural economy…The Independence Institute, which criticized the project, said Xcel Energy has already met its renewable energy targets set by the state and doesn't need more generation capacity…[Other critics] said regulators are rushing the project without a detailed analysis of whether ratepayers will benefit…[Electricity from Rush Creek] is expected to start flowing in late 2018.” click here for more

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