Platte River Power Authority

Name

Platte River Power Authority

Legal name

Platte River Power Authority

Website

https://prpa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wholesale Electric Power

NAICS

Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution (2211), Electric Power Generation (22111), Hydroelectric Power Generation (221111)

SIC

Electric Services (4911)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Power Districts & State/Provincial Utilities (EUADABAD)

Keywords

• Wholesale electricity generation
• Public power utility
• Renewable energy services
• Transmission infrastructure
• Energy market participation

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Collins

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Wholesale electricity sales: Platte River generates and delivers electricity to four owner communities (Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont, Loveland) through wholesale tariffs. As a not-for-profit utility, revenues fund operations, debt service, and infrastructure investments. Rates are set to be revenue-neutral with wholesale rates approved annually by the board of directors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Platte River Power Authority is a not-for-profit, community-owned public power utility that generates and delivers wholesale electricity to four owner communities (Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont, and Loveland, Colorado). Its diversified generation portfolio includes coal, natural gas, wind, solar, and hydropower resources, supported by 806 miles of transmission lines, 28 substations, and participation in the Southwest Power Pool Regional Transmission Organization.

Product overview

Platte River Power Authority operates as a not-for-profit, community-owned public power utility that generates and delivers electricity to four owner communities (Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont, and Loveland, Colorado). The organization's product portfolio centers on wholesale electricity generation across multiple fuel types including coal (Rawhide Unit 1, Craig Units 1&2), natural gas (Rawhide Units A-D and F), wind (Roundhouse, Medicine Bow, Silver Sage), solar (Black Hollow Sun, Rawhide Prairie Solar, Rawhide Flats Solar), and hydropower (Loveland Area Project, Colorado River Storage Project). Supporting infrastructure includes 806 miles of transmission lines and 28 substations with participation in the Southwest Power Pool RTO since April 2026. Customer-facing services include the Efficiency Works energy efficiency program and a Virtual Power Plant program developed with EnergyHub. Planned additions include the Weld Energy Center battery storage facility and Black Hollow Sun Phase II solar expansion.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Efficiency Works: A unified brand for Platte River and its owner communities' customer energy programs, providing guidance and resources for energy efficiency, building electrification, and electric vehicles.

Products and services

• Rawhide Energy Station Primary generation facility near Wellington, Colorado featuring coal (Unit 1, 280 MW), natural gas units (Rawhide A-D: 260 MW, Unit F: 128 MW), and solar installations (Rawhide Flats Solar: 30 MW, Rawhide Prairie Solar: 22 MW with 2 MWh battery storage). Generates electricity for delivery to Platte River's four owner communities.
• Black Hollow Sun Solar Facility ContourGlobal-developed solar facility near Severance, Colorado. Phase I (150 MW) entered commercial operation in September 2025 under a 20-year power purchase agreement. Phase II adds additional capacity to reach approximately 324 MWp total, generating approximately 608 GWh annually.
• Roundhouse Wind Energy Center 225 MW wind energy facility that began commercial operation in 2020 under a purchase power agreement through 2042, supplying clean wind energy to Platte River's owner communities.
• Craig Units 1 and 2 (Yampa Project) Coal-fired generation facilities in Craig, Colorado. Craig Unit 1 (76 MW net capacity) and Unit 2 (75 MW net capacity) are jointly owned with Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, providing baseload power for Platte River's owner communities.
• Weld Energy Center 100 MW battery energy storage facility under development by NextEra Energy Resources in Ault, Colorado. Platte River's first utility-scale battery storage project, valued at $141 million, designed to store excess energy and support renewable integration.
• Efficiency Works Unified customer program combining energy programs and services from Platte River and its owner communities (Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont, Loveland). Provides energy efficiency guidance, rebates, incentives for home and business upgrades, energy advisors, and service provider connections to municipal utility customers.
• Transmission Services Platte River owns 806 miles of transmission lines, 28 substations, and a 19-mile 230-kilovolt generator outlet line. Services include transmission capacity reservation via OASIS, open access under federal requirements, and fiber optics communications supporting wholesale electricity delivery.
• SPP RTO Market Participation Participation in the Southwest Power Pool Regional Transmission Organization enables day-ahead and real-time energy markets, regional transmission planning, resource sharing, and coordinated reliability management across multiple states. Platte River joined on April 1, 2026.
• Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Program enabled through partnership with EnergyHub to design and deploy a virtual power plant that coordinates distributed energy resources from customer premises to support grid reliability for owner communities.
• Loveland Area Project and Colorado River Storage Project Hydropower resources with LAP providing 30 MW summer capacity and CRSP providing 50 MW summer capacity. Contracts extend through 2054 (LAP) and 2057 (CRSP), supplying renewable hydroelectric energy.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% noncarbon energy goal by 2030
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• EnergyHubcoreTechnology or Integration · 16 June 2026Platte River selected EnergyHub as virtual power plant vendor to help design and deploy a VPP enabling customer participation in the energy transition. The partnership supports demand response and distributed energy resource integration.
• NextEra Energy ResourcescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 June 2026NextEra Energy Resources developed the Weld Energy Center, a $141 million battery energy storage facility in Ault, Colorado. The 100 MW battery storage project will store excess energy and support renewable integration for Platte River Power Authority communities, creating over 200 construction jobs.
• Southwest Power Pool (SPP)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 April 2026Platte River joined SPP's Regional Transmission Organization on April 1, 2026, gaining access to day-ahead and real-time markets, shared regional resources, and coordinated transmission planning. The RTO expansion connects western and eastern electric grids across 15 states.
• Tri-State Generation and Transmission AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2026Tri-State is a co-owner of Craig Unit 1 coal plant with Platte River. Both utilities were directed by DOE to keep the plant operational beyond its scheduled retirement. Platte River and Tri-State jointly challenged the emergency order, submitting a request for rehearing that was effectively denied in March 2026.
• Solas EnergyminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 9 December 2025Solas Energy provided project and construction management services for the first phase of Black Hollow Sun solar project near Fort Collins, Colorado.
• ContourGlobalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 November 2025ContourGlobal developed Black Hollow Sun, Northern Colorado's largest solar project with 324 MWp capacity. Phase I (185 MWp) entered commercial operation in September 2025. The facility operates under a 20-year power purchase agreement with Platte River, generating approximately 608 GWh annually.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CPS Energy: CPS Energy is the largest municipally-owned energy company in the U.S., serving San Antonio with a diversified generation portfolio. Comparable as a community-owned utility with a broad mix of generation including coal, gas, nuclear, wind, and solar.
• Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD): SMUD is a community-owned public power utility generating, transmitting, and distributing electricity in California. Comparable as a not-for-profit public power utility with a diversified generation mix and ambitious decarbonization goals, serving municipal customers.
• Salt River Project (SRP): SRP is one of the largest public power utilities in the U.S., serving central Arizona with a diversified generation portfolio including coal, natural gas, hydro, solar, and wind. Comparable in scale and community-owned model with diversified fuel mix.
• Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association: Tri-State is a wholesale power generation and transmission cooperative serving member utilities across Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska. It is a direct peer to Platte River as a Colorado-based wholesale generator/transmitter and co-owns Craig coal plants with Platte River.
• Austin Energy: Austin Energy is a community-owned public power utility serving Austin, Texas with a diversified generation portfolio and aggressive renewable and decarbonization targets. Comparable in scale, public-power model, and clean-energy commitments.
• Omaha Public Power District (OPPD): OPPD is a public power utility serving southeast Nebraska with a diversified generation portfolio including coal, natural gas, nuclear, and renewables. Comparable as a community-owned wholesale/retail utility with similar size and generation mix.

Broad incumbents

• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): TVA is the largest U.S. public power corporation, generating and transmitting electricity across the Tennessee Valley. Comparable as a federal-chartered public power entity with diversified generation and transmission infrastructure serving local distribution utilities.
• Bonneville Power Administration: BPA is a federal agency that markets wholesale hydroelectric power and operates the Pacific Northwest transmission grid. Comparable as a public power wholesaler with significant transmission assets and a renewable-heavy portfolio.
• Western Area Power Administration: WAPA is a federal power marketing administration that sells wholesale electricity from federal dams and other generation across 15 western states. Comparable as a public power wholesaler with significant transmission assets operating in the Western Interconnection alongside Platte River.

Regional players

• Colorado Springs Utilities: Colorado Springs Utilities is a community-owned, multi-service utility providing electric, gas, water, and wastewater service to Colorado Springs. Regional peer operating in the same state with similar municipal utility structure and a comparable generation mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/prpauthority
• YouTubevimeo.com/user27425801
• Facebookfacebook.com/platteriverpower
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/platte-river-power-authority
• Instagraminstagram.com/platteriverpower

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Platte River Power Authority