Craig Coal Unit Must Stay Available Through Dec. 25; Xcel Subsidiary Is a Co-Owner

The U.S. Department of Energy ordered Craig Generating Station’s Unit 1 to remain available from Sept. 27 through Dec. 25, extending a requirement set to expire Sept. 26. Tri-State Generation and Transmission operates the coal unit. Among its co-owners is Public Service Company of Colorado, an Xcel Energy subsidiary—a local connection for Denver-area Xcel customers.

The order requires availability, not round-the-clock generation. It directs Southwest Power Pool to pursue economic dispatch only during hours needed to meet the declared emergency and to minimize ratepayer costs. It establishes no new charge on customers’ bills.

Why the owners disagree

DOE says a regional electricity emergency warrants keeping the unit available for reliability. Tri-State and fellow owner Platte River Power Authority argued in a July rehearing request concerning an earlier order that the requirement disrupted their retirement plans and imposed costs without adequately addressing the emergency DOE described. That filing challenges an earlier order; it is not a ruling on the Sept. 25 extension.

When the first federal order arrived in December 2025, Tri-State said Unit 1 had been slated for retirement for economic and regulatory reasons. It warned that keeping the unit ready could add operating, repair and fuel costs for its cooperative members unless those costs could be shared. That was a warning about potential costs, not a measured charge from the new extension.

What happens next

The new order calls for daily compliance reports and requires Tri-State, working with the co-owners, to report by Oct. 10 on measures to maintain availability. It provides for recovery of costs under federal law but does not determine how much owners will recover or who ultimately pays. For local customers, the established change is an extended readiness requirement at a co-owned plant—not a documented increase in electricity bills.