More than Half of Grand Valley Power’s Energy Comes from Renewable Sources

by Destry Smith, Energy Services Administrator

GRAND JUNCTION, COLO. - (August 12, 2024)  Grand Valley Power recently led its renewable energy standard report. In 2023, your cooperative purchased 55.4% of its energy portfolio from renewable sources. This is a 7% increase over the previous year, and far above the 10% requirement set for electric cooperatives by the state of Colorado.

Colorado is one of the first states in the country to implement a voter-led renewable energy standard, also called a renewable portfolio standard, which requires utilities to purchase a share of their electricity from designated renewable resources. These resources include wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, and hydroelectricity. Although the Colorado Legislature continues to increase the requirement as the industry transitions to clean energy, Grand Valley Power has always exceeded the mark set for electric cooperatives.

To calculate the percentage, GVP accounts for the number of megawatt-hours sourced from designated renewable resources and divides that number by the total megawatt-hours the cooperative sold during the same period. A major contributor to Grand Valley Power’s high percentage of renewables are the wind resources allocated to the cooperative from its wholesale power provider, Public Service Company of Colorado, more commonly known as Xcel Energy. Locally, GVP contributes 6% toward the renewable energy standard. It is important to note that contractual obligations limit the amount of energy that Grand Valley Power can purchase outside of its wholesale power provider. Ultimately, GVP is in great shape to meet its organizational goals and all state and federal clean energy requirements.