USDA grants $537M to rural electric cooperatives, including United Power

BRIGHTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $262 million to United Power as a part of its Empowering Rural America program.

The UP award is part of a total of $537 million in USDA grants for rural electric cooperatives in Colorado to upgrade their infrastructure to allow for more renewable energy.

“United Power is proud of our work to transition to a new energy portfolio that will both reduce carbon emissions and stabilize energy costs for our members — a journey we began in May of 2024,” UP CEO Mark Gabriel said in a news release from U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s office. “The New ERA grant will help us offset the cost to commission diverse, locally sourced power and provide low carbon electricity to serve one of Colorado’s fastest growing regions. United Power is honored to be recognized for our efforts by the USDA with the awarding of this generous grant.”

United Power reported in a statement that it will use the money “to offset the cost of its transition to a strategic, clean-energy portfolio – including seven power purchase agreements – that will provide more than 760 megawatts of renewable resources to cooperative members.” 

The other two award recipients are $225 million to CORE Electric Cooperative in Sedalia and $50 million to the Yampa Valley Electric Association in Steamboat Springs. Bennet, D-Colo., reported in the release that he helped secure roughly $13 billion in the Inflation Reduction Act to support rural clean-energy initiatives through USDA, including nearly $10 billion for the New ERA program.

The $9.7 billion ERA program is part of the Inflation Reduction Act and represents the largest investment in rural electrification since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Rural Electrification Act into law in 1936, according to the USDA website.“Colorado’s rural electric cooperatives are setting the standard for communities across the country working to move toward a clean energy future,” Bennet said in the release. “This latest funding announcement builds on the billions of dollars being invested in our co-ops to upgrade their energy infrastructure, create high-paying jobs, and lower energy costs for farms, families and small businesses in rural communities all over our state.”

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