That changed with the passage by Congress of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022. The law created an entirely new ball game allowing rural electric co-ops to at last begin taking advantage of the many benefits of moving from fossil fuel generation to clean energy resources like wind, solar, geothermal and battery storage.

 

By the end of 2024, most of the $9.7 billion in IRA funding earmarked for rural electric cooperatives through the New ERA (Empower Rural America) program had been committed. And both Tri-State and Colorado were major beneficiaries of the grants and low-interest loans made available through the program. Following is a summary (FYI, USDA and RUS have removed all web pages related to New ERA).

 

• Total investment in co-ops with a footprint in Colorado and/or Tri-State: $4.2 BILLION 

• Tri-State New ERA award: $679 million, which it leveraged into a total of $2.5 BILLIO in clean energy financing.

• Total investment in current Tri-State member co-ops: $56 million

• Total investment in current and previous Tri-State member co-ops: $649 million

 

 

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association

$679 million ($2.5 billion)

Tri-State provides wholesale power to 40 member electric cooperatives serving more than 1 million customers in four states: Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming and Nebraska. The $679 million it received – and subsequently leveraged into $2.5 billion in New ERA financing – is expected to reduce electricity rates for cooperative members 10 percent by 2034, amassing $430 million in rural consumer benefits over 10 years and creating over 2,000 jobs. New ERA funds will finance the purchase of 1,040 megawatts of renewable energy and more than 200 megawatts of energy storage. New ERA funds will also help Tri-State refinance the retirement of 1,100 megawatts of coal-fired energy generation. The New ERA investment will reduce climate pollution by nearly 5.8 million tons annually. 

 

Grand Valley Rural Power (not a Tri-State member)

$13 million

Grand Valley provides power to nearly 20,000 customers in Mesa, Delta and Garfield counties in western Colorado. It was awarded over $13 million in New ERA funding to procure more than 26 megawatts of renewable energy from a solar agrivoltaics facility in rural Colorado. The project will power nearly 6,600 homes per year, creating new short- and long-term jobs on Colorado’s Western Slope, and reducing climate pollution by more than 60,000 tons each year, equivalent to removing over 14,000 gas-powered cars from the road annually. It will also stabilize costs to co-op members, with projected cost savings of more than $700,000 per year for 15 years.

Kit Carson Electric Cooperative (Tri-State member until 2016)

$231 million

Taos, N.M.-based Kit Carson, which provides power to around 23,000 customers in northern New Mexico, received $231 million in New ERA funding. It will use the investment to support its Pathways Project and build 104 megawatts of new clean energy from green hydrogen and solar facilities with battery energy storage systems, enough to power nearly 25,000 homes each year. The projects will reduce climate pollution by nearly 98,000 tons each year, the same as removing 20,700 gasoline-powered cars from the road annually. The Pathways Project is projected to create up to 350 jobs during construction and generate approximately $298 million in economic output, with a total tax impact of more than $44 million over the next five years. 

 

Mountain Parks Electric (Tri-State member until Feb. 1, 2025)

$100 million

Serving northern Colorado’s high country, Mountain Parks provides power to around 18,500 members. The co-op was awarded over $100 million in New ERA funding, which it will invest in procuring over 300,000 megawatt-hours of renewable energy through power purchase agreements (PPAs) in rural areas of Colorado, enough to power nearly 18,500 homes annually.
Through the PPAs, Mountain Parks expects to lower rates and expand support of affordable housing and low-income families, stabilize costs to rural cooperative members, and reduce climate pollution by over 291,000 tons each year, the equivalent nearly 70,000 gasoline-powered cars annually.
 

Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association (current Tri-State member)

$44 million

PVREA provides power to more than 56,000 customers in Larimer, Weld, and Boulder counties in Colorado. Awarded nearly $44 million in New ERA funding, the co-op plans to use it to procure 108 megawatts of wind energy and construct a new 5 MW battery energy storage system. The New ERA investment will generate up to 330 short- and long-term jobs, stabilize costs for rural electric cooperative members, and reduce carbon emissions by more than 370,000 tons per year, helping achieve the objective of 80% carbon-free energy by 2030.
 

San Miguel Power Association (current Tri-State member)

$9.8 million

San Miguel, which serves around 13,000 customers in the rugged mountains of southwest Colorado, will use its $9.8 million New ERA investment to partner with communities Montrose County in building a new local solar facility. Output from the 20-megawatt solar array will be enough to power 5,330 households annually, while creating jobs, boosting local tax revenue, and reducing wholesale power costs to members.

 

San Luis Valley Rural Electric Cooperative (current Tri-State member)

$1.7 million

The co-op serves around 7,500 customers throughout the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado’s high country. It received $1.7 million in New ERA funding, which will be to procure 2 megawatts of clean energy from solar facilities in rural Colorado, enough to power nearly 400 homes each year. San Luis officials expect the funding to create around 15 short-term jobs and reduce greenhouse gas pollution by nearly 4,900 tons each year, the same as removing over 1,000 cars from the road annually. The solar purchases will save members approximately $200,000 per year in power costs.

 

United Power (Tri-State member until May 2024)

$262 million

United Power, which until May 2024 was Tri-State’s largest member co-op in terms of geography, revenue and meters, serves around 110,000 members across a sprawling service territory spanning Colorado’s Front Range and Eastern Plains. United was awarded nearly $262 million in New ERA funding which it will use to offset the cost of its transition to clean energy, including power purchase agreements. The investment will provide more than 760 megawatts of renewable resources, more than doubling the current size of its renewables holdings. The projects will cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than 2.1 million tons annually, equivalent to taking more than a half million cars off the road.

 

Yampa Valley Electric Association (not a Tri-State member)

$50 million

Yampa Valley serves around 23,000 members in the mountain ranching and resort communities of northern Colorado. It will use its nearly $50 million New ERA investment to procure up to 150 megawatts of solar energy and 75 megawatts of battery energy storage, projects that reduce climate pollution by 255,000 tons per year. The amount of purchased power is the equivalent of  electricity for more than 45,000 homes. 

 

Basin Electric Power Cooperative 

$775 million

Like Tri-State, Basin is a generation and transmission, or G&T, co-op, providing wholesale power to more than 3 million customers, including contracts to provide power to Tri-State. Basin received $775 million in New ERA funding for acquiring additional renewable energy generation and enhancing existing cooperative-owned renewable assets. In all, the investment is expected to add over 1,400 megawatts of new clean energy capacity, creating both short- and long-term jobs, reducing carbon pollution, and providing estimated cost savings of over $400 million to its members.

 

CORE Electric Cooperative

$225 million

CORE, formerly called Intermountain Rural Electric, provides electricity to more than 375,000 customers along Colorado’s Front Range to the east, west and south of Denver. It was awarded nearly $225 million New ERA funding, which will be used to acquire 550 megawatts of new wind and solar resources through power purchase agreements and add 100 megawatts of battery storage capacity. The investment will create new short- and long-term jobs, stabilize costs for members, and reduce pollution in support of Colorado’s net zero emissions goals, reducing greenhouse gas pollution by the equivalent of taking 321,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road.