Four Northern Colorado Cities Extend Power Partnership Through 2075
Loveland, Fort Collins, Longmont and Estes Park have extended their partnership in Platte River Power Authority through 2075, securing wholesale electricity supply for the region's 350,000-plus residents under a modernized agreement that reaffirms commitments to reliability, environmental responsibility and financial sustainability.
The four municipalities signed extensions to both the organic contract that established Platte River in 1973 and their individual power supply agreements with the wholesale utility. The extensions follow unanimous approval votes by all four governing bodies during public meetings throughout fall 2025.
The power supply agreements govern how Platte River delivers electricity to the owner communities, which then handle local distribution and customer billing through their respective municipal utilities.
Wholesale Utility Serves Four Municipal Systems
Platte River Power Authority operates as a not-for-profit wholesale electric generation and transmission utility serving exclusively its four owner communities. The authority does not directly serve individual customers but instead supplies electricity to Estes Park Power and Communications, Fort Collins Utilities, Longmont Power & Communications, and Loveland Water & Power.
Each city and town manages its own distribution system and sets retail rates based on Platte River's wholesale rates plus local distribution costs and administrative expenses. The wholesale utility delivered approximately 3.3 million megawatt-hours to the four communities in 2023, according to Platte River strategic budget documents.
Platte River was established in 1973 through an inter-municipal agreement among the four communities in response to rapid population growth and increased electricity demand in Northern Colorado. Colorado law recognized Platte River as a political subdivision of the state in 1975, granting it authority to invest in large-scale generating assets and transmission infrastructure.
Eight-Member Board Represents All Communities
Platte River operates under an eight-member Board of Directors with two representatives from each owner community. Each municipality appoints its mayor or designee plus one additional member, typically the director of the community's utility department, according to Platte River governance documents.
Board members serve staggered four-year terms and set policy direction, oversee major decisions and hire the general manager who handles operational management. The board-driven structure ensures each community maintains equal voice in strategic decisions affecting the regional power supply.
Any amendment to the organic contract or power supply agreements requires approval by all four city councils or the Estes Park Town Board through formal votes in public meetings. The requirement for unanimous municipal approval provides each community with veto power over major strategic changes.
Clean Energy Transition Drives Long-Term Planning
The contract extension through 2075 reaffirms Platte River's commitment to environmental responsibility, including the board-adopted Resource Diversification Policy targeting 100 percent noncarbon electricity by 2030. The policy, adopted in 2018, guides Platte River's investments in renewable generation subject to maintaining reliability and cost-effectiveness.
As of 2023, renewable energy sources including wind, solar and hydropower accounted for 33.3 percent of Platte River's generation portfolio, according to the utility's strategic budget. Major solar and wind acquisitions are scheduled to significantly increase that percentage as the authority retires coal-fired generation.
Platte River plans to close its stake in Craig Unit 1, a coal-fired plant, by 2025. The authority has expanded solar projects including Rawhide Prairie Solar and continues evaluating storage technologies to support grid reliability as renewable generation increases.
The four owner communities have each established aggressive clean energy targets. Fort Collins set a goal of 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030, though the city currently sits at 37 percent renewable electricity as of 2024 with Platte River forecasting 88 percent renewable generation by decade's end.
Rate Structure Emphasizes Stability
Platte River operates on a cost-of-service, not-for-profit basis with all revenues reinvested into system reliability and capital improvements rather than shareholder dividends. The board reviews and sets wholesale electric rates annually, with any changes requiring board approval.
For 2025, Platte River's average wholesale rate increased 6.3 percent over 2024 levels to cover generation, transmission, debt service and capital improvements required for the clean energy transition, according to rate documents. The wholesale rate serves as the primary input into retail electric rates charged by the four municipal utilities, which add distribution system costs and administrative expenses.
Municipal utilities across Northern Colorado have implemented rate increases to address infrastructure needs and wholesale power costs. Loveland utility rates will increase an average of $10.64 monthly in 2026, with electric rates rising 5.88 percent to reflect rising construction costs and clean energy investments.
Agreement Modernization Addresses Future Flexibility
The updated organic contract and power supply agreements include modernized legal language reflecting changes in laws, best practices and community priorities since the last major extension in 2019. The revisions enhance provisions for resource planning flexibility, allowing more agile investment in renewables, storage and emerging grid technologies.
The months-long collaboration between Platte River and the owner communities involved presentations to each governing body during fall 2025 before culminating in unanimous approval votes. The public process included opportunities for community input through city council and town board meetings.
The extension continues a partnership model that has guided Northern Colorado's wholesale power supply for more than five decades while adapting to changing energy markets, environmental priorities and technology capabilities.
Additional information about Platte River Power Authority is available at prpa.org.