Colorado wants to replace your natural gas with electricity
- Media Logic Radio
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Colorado is moving ahead with a major shift away from natural gas and toward electrified home heating, even as the Trump administration pushes to revive fossil fuel use nationally.
On Monday, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission finalized a new Clean Heat framework that requires Xcel and other natural gas utilities to cut emissions from their systems by 41% within 10 years. The long-term goal is 100% decarbonization of building heat by 2050.
To get there, Colorado will need to help hundreds of thousands of homeowners and landlords replace gas furnaces, water heaters, and stoves with electric heat pumps and appliances powered by renewable energy.
Environmental groups welcomed the decision. The Sierra Club and the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project had pushed for steeper cuts — about 55% by 2035 — but called the compromise a major win. They noted the decision is stronger than what some utilities and state agencies recommended.
Advocates say the shift will improve air quality in communities long affected by pollution, and should lower household energy costs over time. But they also stress the need to protect consumers from rising rates as utilities invest in electrification. Many consumers are now worried about rising costs for energy, and what it will mean for their wallets.
Colorado’s major gas providers — Xcel Energy, Black Hills Energy, and Atmos Energy — will now be required to tighten pipeline systems, cut methane leaks, and support customers in switching to cleaner heating.
Xcel says efficiency upgrades and electrification offer the most cost-effective path to meeting the targets. The company’s Clean Heat plan, approved last year, includes incentives for heat pumps, insulation, and high-efficiency appliances.
About 10% of Colorado’s greenhouse gas emissions come from home and building heating. The Sierra Club estimates the new rules will prevent more than 44 million metric tons of greenhouse gases and reduce nearly 23,000 tons of nitrogen oxides, pollutants that contribute to the Front Range’s persistent ozone problem.
