United Power was focused on securing new power contracts this past year with the flexibility to meet its growing demand in advance of the upcoming exit from its current wholesale power provider — effective May 1, 2024. The cooperative’s leadership recognized the opportunity to stabilize rising wholesale power costs and ease its financial burden when it announced the exit in 2022 and began requesting power supply proposals from regional and national generators. In keeping with its established reputation as a forward-thinking, innovative electric utility, the co-op is partnering with nationally recognized industry leaders to reduce its carbon intensity through a carefully curated mix of generation resources, including natural gas and renewable options, and developing groundbreaking demand response systems that will cut costs when energy is most expensive. 

United Power had a stellar year in addition to the new power contracts, which included eclipsing a new milestone in residential rooftop solar installations. The coooperative also launched a website refresh with enhanced focus on member engagement and data-driven navigation updates, renewed the popular Member Choice Grant program, engaged with local communities in new ways, and debuted an all-new battery pilot program for members.

New Power Supply Contracts & Groundbreaking Innovation

United Power has the largest load among Colorado’s electric distribution cooperatives, which means it will require a diverse group of suppliers to meet its energy needs as it continues to grow.

The cooperative announced a power supply contract with Denver-based Guzman Energy in July — featuring fixed wholesale pricing and securing approximately one-third of its supply needs beginning in May 2024 — and a strategic relationship with Xcel Energy in September to explore opportunities for maximizing the value of their combined portfolios. Smaller contracts with OneEnergy and Whetstone Power will add approximately 40 megawatts (MW) of renewable resources to the co-op’s energy mix. 

Also announced this past year were two groundbreaking battery storage agreements with Ameresco and Whetstone Power. The cooperative will strategically install more than 100 MW of battery storage at substations located throughout its service territory to increase system resiliency and reliability, balance load, reduce costs, and more efficiently incorporate local renewables. 

“The use of batteries on our distribution network is essential to a resilient and responsive power system and we are excited to move ahead with one of the most aggressive plans for such a system,” said Mark A. Gabriel, United Power’s President and CEO.

Read more about United Power’s power supply.

Rooftop Solar Milestone

More United Power members are opting to generate power locally than ever before. Rooftop solar has quickly become the preferred solution for members who are looking to offset their energy usage with renewable options. 

The cooperative has a residential solar penetration of nearly 11%, which ranks among the highest representations for electric utilities of all sizes and more than double the national average. Last year, United Power became one of the first cooperatives to surpass 10,000 residential solar installations. Members have added nearly 6,500 rooftop solar systems to their homes since early 2020, more than doubling the total number of systems interconnected to the United Power grid. The combined generation potential of these systems is nearly 70 MW.

United Power is proud to support a robust solar community, and is committed to providing a member-friendly connection process, which has been recognized by the Colorado Solar and Storage Association. 
United Power also debuted an all-new member program for those interested in pairing their solar system with battery storage. Members interested in learning more about the cooperative’s solar interconnection process and the new battery pilot program can find more details under the My Energy tab at www.unitedpower.com.

Online Experience Improvements

United Power members may have noticed a new look and feel to the website and online account portal. The cooperative launched a refreshed website design in June, focused on helping members quickly navigate to their desired location in fewer clicks and finding information faster.

United Power also rolled out an update for its online account portal, SmartHub, to improve functionality and enhance user experience. Members may sign up for a free account at www.unitedpower.com/smarthub.

Giving Back to the Community

Concern for communities is a cooperative principle United Power values and takes seriously. That is why the cooperative renewed its Member Choice Grant program for a third year and distributed $12,000 to nonprofits nominated by its members. For updates about grants and 2024 nominations, visit Member Choice.

Additionally, the cooperative identified new ways to interact with its members and support local athletics and education through a Friday Night Lights check presentation in Brighton and honoring a lineman in Carbon Valley during the fall football season.

United Power is looking forward to celebrating its 85th anniversary and the change in power suppliers this year. Join us as we recognize how the cooperative has championed community growth, helped spur economic development, supported community engagement, and will continue being more than just your local electric utility now and into the future. Just as we have since 1938, United Power will continue to be “Here for Good” in the communities we serve.
 

Brighton, CO – On Dec. 19, 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a Final Decision that affirms in part, reverses in part, modifies in part, and clarifies in part an Initial Decision issued by a FERC administrative law judge in September 2022 addressing contract termination methodology and procedures for members exiting from Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. (Tri-State). This is an important next step in United Power’s path to exit Tri-State by May 1, 2024. 

“While we are still reviewing FERC’s order, we are pleased to see that it supports a variation of the balance sheet approach methodology we proposed versus a contract damages or lost revenues approach,” said Mark A. Gabriel, President and CEO of United Power.

In a Dec. 8 settlement with Tri-State, both utilities agreed to cooperate in good faith to provide the information necessary to calculate the amount of the contract termination payment. “To that end, we intend to work together to determine the appropriate adjustments and offsets so that Tri-State can timely file its compliance filing, and we can file an executed withdrawal agreement. United Power is focused on efforts to ensure a positive future for our members,” Gabriel added.

United Power has taken steps to resolve disputes with Tri-State and to reach areas of alignment and agreement to timely facilitate its departure. Most recently, United Power dismissed state court litigation against Tri-State, and filed motions to withdraw its appeal and intervention in two separate matters before the DC Circuit Court. In September, United Power made an immediate payment to Tri-State for Reserved Issue 3 in the Stated Rate proceeding consistent with the guidance in FERC’s final order. 

Recently Announced Rate Change Takes Effect Jan. 1, 2024

Last month, United Power announced a rate increase taking effect Jan. 1, 2024, and while it is never easy to hear about prices going up, electricity remains one of the best values in most households. Today’s modern household is powering more appliances with electricity. It provides warmth, safety, sanitation, and entertainment. Consider what was in your home just ten or twenty years ago. How many televisions do you have today, compared with how many were in your home growing up? How many connected devices like laptops, tablets, or phones are charging in your home every day? Even something like air conditioning, which was not a standard feature in Colorado homes twenty years ago, is making the modern household more comfortable. 

When people talk about the rising cost of electricity, they often fail to notice how much more they are using. Rates at United Power have not changed since Jan. 1, 2020. During the pandemic and through the many months while inflation was running rampant in everything our members need to live — from groceries to gas — United Power rates did not change. Advanced planning was one of the key reasons we were able to hold rates steady during that period — from existing orders of heavy equipment and vehicles to belt-tightening in every function at the cooperative. United Power was able to provide stable rates while our members navigated rising prices on everything they need for their households.

The Colorado Sun recently reported on the cost of the five most common grocery items Colorado households purchase — milk, one pound of hamburger, a loaf of bread, a dozen eggs, and a pound of coffee. They reported that over the last five years the cost of these items has risen 35%. The price of many goods has been impacted by increases in transportation costs, labor, and raw ingredients. Any homeowner who was lucky enough to lock in a low interest home loan is still seeing their monthly payment rise due to increases in property taxes and homeowners’ insurance. All of those factors also impact your utility.

Keeping the system operating efficiently and making sure we can replace and upgrade equipment where necessary are adding to our operational costs. Consider when we need to purchase land for a substation to serve a new neighborhood; United Power is paying higher and higher prices to acquire land for this development, and all those costs are paid through the rates members pay for electricity.

One of the most powerful things about being served by a cooperative is that United Power is a not-for-profit entity. The cooperative does not work for shareholders who want to see profits. Anything collected above what we need to operate is considered patronage capital — and is eventually returned to members as capital credits. United Power serves its members with the goal of providing reliable electricity without an eye on profits. 

Learn more about upcoming rate changes.