COLORADO — If you've been in Colorado Springs for a while, you probably remember the closure of the Martin Drake Power Plant.
A symbol of its time, the Martin Drake Power Plant opened in 1925, bringing jobs and innovation to the Springs. Almost a century later, the power plant was decommissioned by Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) and power generation officially stopped in 2022.
Demolition of the plant began in Summer 2023, was completed in 2024, and had an estimated cost of $20 million.
Watch The End Of A Era In Colorado Springs As Martin Drake Power Plant Demolition Finishes
The closure is a part of CSU's Sustainable Energy Plan to reduce emissions in the energy sector.
Currently, their goal is to reduce their carbon footprint by 80% by 2030, and the transformation of the Martin Drake Power Plant facility is only one part of the plan.
The utility company has a full list of its sustainable energy projects on its website, but some of the completed projects include the Pike Solar Facility, Briargate Substation, and the Horizon Substation.
President Donald Trump has been outspoken about his plan to change the energy industry in the U.S.
According to hisofficial political platform, his goal is to "make America the dominant energy producer in the world, by far!"
His plan to accomplish this is to lift restrictions on oil, natural gas, and coal production, dive into nuclear energy, and lower energy costs.
But how will this affect Colorado's major energy industry?
Out of the eight coal power plants in Colorado, two have closed, and the remaining six have plans to close or are transitioning to a cleaner form of power.
"The era of coal in Colorado appears to be ending, and that poses serious challenges to the workers and communities that rely on it."
While Colorado is leading in other forms of energy, particularly natural gas, "coal-fired power plants accounted for 32% of Colorado's total in-state generation in 2023," according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
However, Colorado Governor Jared Polis has been dedicated to reducing carbon emissions and shifting to sustainable energy, as he outlines in his climate action roadmap.
So, I reached out to Xcel Energy, the owner of the Comanche 3 Coal Plant in Pueblo, to talk about what the future of energy looks like.
I met with Jack Ihle, the Regional Vice President of Regulatory Policy for Xcel, about how the 120 employees are feeling about Comanche's impending closure, and he tells me that Xcel has already decommissioned 12 coal plants throughout Colorado, with zero layoffs.
"I think understandably there can be some frustration and feeling that there's some uncertainty, but again, our track record is great."
While Comanche won't officially stop generating power until 2030, the decommissioning of the plant shows an already evident shift in power in Colorado.
He says that the plant will most likely be repurposed to support wind, solar, and natural gas energy opportunities.
"We certainly recognize our generating facilities are a really important part of the Pueblo community." According to Jack, "We want to continue to support the Pueblo community and our workforce."
We briefly spoke about how plans could change as the second Trump administration has been vocal about reducing energy regulations, but Jack doesn't anticipate any changes for Xcel's future in Colorado.
Will these plans affect you or something we missed? We want to hear from you, send us an email to digitalproducer@koaa.com.
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