Xcel: 2030 Comanche closure to be final move away from coal

MINNEAPOLIS — Xcel Energy Inc.’s (NYSE: XEL) Comanche 3 coal plant in Pueblo will be the utility’s final coal operation between 2028 — when Xcel’s Tolk Generating Station in Texas closes, four years earlier than previously planned — and 2030, when Comanche 3 will be retired. 

The timing of closure of the Pueblo coal plant — initially set for 2040, then for 2034 — has been an issue for regulators with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, some of whom have wanted Comanche 3 retired sooner rather than later. 

The accelerated closure plan at Comanche, announced this year, and at the Tolk…