Planning commission recommends approval of Platte River’s Rawhide turbine permit after split vote

The Larimer County Planning Commission on Feb. 12 recommended that the Board of County Commissioners approve Platte River Power Authority’s Article 10.41 permit application to add five aeroderivative natural‑gas turbines and related infrastructure at the Rawhide Energy Station near Wellington, by a 5–4 roll call vote.

Why it matters: The turbines are designed to provide 200 megawatts of dispatchable capacity intended to back up large additions of wind and solar in PRPA’s resource plan. Supporters say the project will help the utility retire a coal-fired “Unit 1” by 2029 and keep electricity reliable during extreme weather; opponents say adding new gas infrastructure locks in additional greenhouse‑gas emissions and threatens local air quality.

Platte River’s proposal and staff recommendation Platte River Power Authority (PRPA) asked for a 10.41 review to install five new GE LM6000 aeroderivative gas turbines (about 40 MW each), an ammonia storage tank, wastewater and water tanks, substation bus work and transmission upgrades, and construction staging areas. PRPA representatives told the commission the turbines are intended to be a flexible, fast-start resource to support intermittent solar and wind and to facilitate the retirement of Rawhide Unit 1, a coal unit the utility expects to retire by the end of 2029.

County planning staff summarized the application and said the project would occupy roughly 30 acres of the 4,590‑acre Rawhide site with another approximately 32 acres used for laydown, for a total of about 62 acres affected. Staff reported referral comments from 10 agencies and said the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) will handle the state air permitting (Title V/major source) process. Staff recommended approval subject to 32 potential conditions…