CSU proposes rate changes and major increase in budget for billions in projects over next 5 years

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) is looking for a major increase in their budget for 2025, which means increased base rates for their customers. The utility says that they're looking to spend over $3.5 billion in upgrades, expansion, and projects to meet state energy goals over the next several years.

CSU Chief Financial Officer, Tristan Gearhart says that in the utility's 100 year history, they have amassed about $4 billion dollars in assets, but are now proposing to add about $3.7 billion in infrastructure changes over the next five years.

"That's probably more than we've seen in any five year period of our existence as an organization." explained Gearhart.

As a result he says they're asking for a $1.8 billion dollar budget for 2025, which is 21% higher than what they had allotted for 2024. According to CSU, this would increase the average household bill of their customers by $13.90 per month in 2025.

By the year 2029, their projections show that the average household bill would see an increase of 80$ from where their bill stands right now in 2024.

The base rates would increase by the following percentages each year, for the years 2025 through 2029.

• Electricity: 6.5%
• Gas: 4%
• Water: 6.5%
• Wastewater: 9%

So, customers may be wondering, where is all this money going towards?

Gearhart explains that the State's Clean Energy plan, which aims to reduce greenhouse gases by 80% by 2030, is leading them to plan for more renewable sources of energy, such as wind, solar, and batteries.

Those combined efforts would aim to produce about a whopping 1,300 to 1,400 megawatts of power for the city.

In addition to renewables, CSU says they are looking to create a natural gas plant to replace the Ray Nixon power plant just south of Fountain, which is set to shut down by the end of the decade. That natural gas plant, along with upgrading substations around Colorado Springs, will cost about $1 billion dollars. The plant would produce about 350 megawatts of power towards the city grid.

"We're expanding the capacity of the existing substation so that they can handle all of the load of electricity that's coming through." said Gearhart.

Lastly, the Utility says that they have a project to expand wastewater infrastructure out near the eastern edge of the city, to accommodate the growing development and growth. They say those projects would add another $400 million to their total costs in their five year outlook.

"We're trying to line up rate increases along with the need that we see with this large capital infrastructure plan over the next five years." said Gearhart.

CSU explains that despite the increase to their customers bill with this proposal, a new time-of-day pay scale for electricity may be able to save them money, as well as the strain on their grid. The pay scale, for example, would charge houses more for consuming energy in their home during the peak hours of 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, but conversely, could help customers.

"If you're able to do things like move the time that you run your dishwasher or your clothes-dryer off of that 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. period of time, there's actually opportunities for customers to save in their bill." explained Gearhart.

There are also existing ways to help with lowering your utility bill, such as applying for the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) which lasts from November through April of each year, as well as Project COPE.

CSU will present their case to the Colorado Springs City Council on Wednesday, August 21.

A first vote on the matter by City Council wouldn't come until October 22.