Gas Planning Pilot Communities
Background
Colorado House Bill 24-1370, Reduce Cost of Use of Natural Gas, established a process for local governments in Xcel Energy natural gas service territory to explore neighborhood-scale clean heat projects. By using alternative heat sources — such as geothermal, thermal energy networks, or electric heat pumps — these projects will reduce reliance on the natural gas system in new construction and/or existing neighborhoods, saving residents money and lowering building greenhouse gas emissions.
Contact Information:
gov_ceo_policy@state.co.us
Gas Planning Pilot Communities
The statute required the Colorado Energy Office (CEO) to issue a request for information (RFI) to:
- Identify up to five eligible communities to participate as gas planning pilot communities
- Define the minimum criteria a local government must meet to become a gas planning pilot community.
The RFI closed on January 31, 2025, and CEO and Xcel evaluated the responses based on the criteria in the statute.
On April 30, 2025, CEO and Xcel Energy jointly filed the results of the RFI with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). In that filing, CEO and Xcel Energy recommended the following communities to begin negotiations as Gas Planning Pilot Communities:
- Denver
- Boulder
- Breckenridge
CEO and Xcel also recommended Winter Park and Golden as Backup Communities. The anticipated date of the PUC decision determining which projects will move forward is June 30, 2025.
If you would like to follow this regulatory proceeding, search for Proceeding No. 25D-0183G using the CPUC E-Filings System.
