The state’s largest electric cooperative has won $26.4 million in a lawsuit against Xcel Energy-Colorado over losses it said it sustained during long outages at a coal power plant in Pueblo.
CORE Electric Cooperative, formerly the Intermountain Rural Electric Association, sued Xcel Energy in 2021, saying the utility had lost tens of millions of dollars because Xcel Energy-Colorado’s chronically malfunctioning Comanche 3 coal plant couldn’t deliver power as expected.
A Denver District Court jury agreed with some of CORE’s arguments Wednesday, awarding the cooperative $14.6 million for the loss of energy when the coal plant wasn’t working and $11.85 million for damages.
However, the matter likely isn’t settled. Both sides plan to file motions challenging various points of law that led to the verdict.
Xcel Energy intends to ask the court “to correct some significant errors of law that impacted the trial and, if necessary, appeal,” Xcel spokeswoman Michele Aguayo said in an email. Aguayo said although CORE sought more than $250 million, the jury largely rejected its claims.
CORE Electric Cooperative also plans to ask the court to correct errors “which resulted in a verdict that did not fully recognize the relief to which CORE is entitled,” cooperative spokeswoman Amber King said in an email.
CORE, based in Sedalia, said in its lawsuit that in 2020 it paid $20 million more for power because Comanche 3 in Pueblo was out of commission for all but a few days that year because of mechanical problems. The company, which serves roughly 375,000 people, said it also lost money because of outages in 2022.
“This verdict will at least partly compensate CORE for damages caused by the systemic failures of Xcel to prudently operate Comanche 3, which negatively impacted our member-owners. We look forward to moving on from this lawsuit as the next step in our independent power future,” CORE CEO Jeff Baudier said in a statement Thursday.
The jury rejected CORE’s move to force a buyout of its 25.3% interest in the coal plant.
“CORE is an owner of Comanche. We continue to evaluate all of our options regarding our future in Comanche 3,” Baudier said in an email.
As the Colorado General Assembly and Gov. Jared Polis’ administration have pursued expanding the use of renewable energy, Xcel Energy and other utilities operating in the state have moved to shut down coal-fired power plants. The Comanche 3 plant was originally expected to operate until 2070, but Xcel plans to shutter it by the start of 2031.
While addressing the push to phase out its coal plants, Xcel Energy has also faced criticism from customers and other utilities for the outages and mechanical problems at Comanche 3. A Colorado Public Utilities Commission report in 2021 said the unit, which started operating in 2010, had averaged 91.5 days per year of outages over a decade and was out of commission for all but a handful of days in 2020.
The plant was shut down in early 2022 because of problems with the generator. The PUC will consider proposals by Xcel for recovering its costs for closing coal plants early.
