This week, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) finalized its decision on Xcel’s first Gas Infrastructure Plan (“GIP”). The landmark decision is a major win for energy affordability and the climate, putting the gas company on a path towards scaling down investment in fossil infrastructure and incorporating many of the suggested improvements made by our organizations to improve the company’s gas planning processes to scale up investment in clean energy resources.
The PUC decision directs Xcel’s future GIPs to assess a broader suite of opportunities for replacing polluting and expensive fossil gas investments with Non-Pipeline Alternatives (“NPAs”). NPAs like energy efficiency and electrification can reduce demand for fossil gas, postponing or eliminating the need for new pipeline extensions, replacements, or capacity and unlocking emissions reductions and cost…