DENVER—Power companies and others are reviewing Xcel Energy’s latest ideas for cutting emissions at its coal-fired power plants.
Conservationists, natural gas companies and some power producers are lining up against Xcel’s latest recommendation to add new emission controls on the coal-fired Cherokee 4 unit in Denver by 2018, instead of shutting it down in 2022 as Xcel proposed in August.
Western Resource Advocates said Xcel’s newly recommended plan wouldn’t offer as many health benefits as the original plan, and the Colorado Independent Energy Association said it would do less to protect the environment. The association has members who want to provide power to replace output from Cherokee 4.
Three natural gas companies—EnCana Oil & Gas (USA), Noble Energy Inc. and Chesapeake Energy Corp.—support Xcel’s original plan to retire Cherokee 4 and have natural gas-powered generation replace its output.
Even Xcel prefers its original plan, which also would add emissions controls on other coal-fired units and have some run on natural gas.
However, staff for the Colorado Public Utilities Commission said any plan must be implemented by the end of 2017, as stated under a state law that required Xcel to file an emissions-cutting plan in the first place.
Xcel said its newly recommended plan would be implemented in time, with less impact to its electricity customers than other alternatives.
Encana, Noble Energy and Chesapeake contend in documents filed Wednesday that the PUC still can consider tweaks to Xcel’s original proposal that would shut down Cherokee 4 or have it run on natural gas by the end of 2017.
The PUC has until Dec. 15 to accept a plan.
